Oscar Piastri of McLaren and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari.
Charles Leclerc has lived up to expectations to take pole position in Monaco. The Ferrari driver scored his third P1 in qualifying in Monte Carlo and held off surprise attacks from McLaren and Max Verstappen to secure his first pole since Las Vegas 2023.
Ferrari was the team to beat all weekend. Only Red Bull with Max Verstappen and Mercedes in the hands of Lewis Hamilton seemed a serious threat to the Italians until qualifying. But the Maranello team had an unwanted guest in the fight for pole.
The guest who made a significant impact in the last moments of the race was Oscar Piastri from McLaren, causing some trouble for the Monegasque driver. Surprisingly, it was the Australian who had the perfect qualifying lap, with more than two tenths of a second left to secure the pole position.
Leclerc, despite the circumstances, managed to secure yet another pole position in Monaco. He showcased his exceptional skills with two impressive laps in Q3. With a strong performance on Friday and Saturday morning, the Ferrari driver established himself as the frontrunner. He sealed the deal with a remarkable final push, ensuring that he stayed ahead of the potential surprise from Oscar Piastri and McLaren.
Although the MCL38 exhibited superior overall speed compared to the SF24, the Ferrari outperformed in terms of mechanical grip and traction. This is evident, for instance, at the entrance of the tunnel and in the circuit’s slowest section. While the McLaren achieves higher speeds in the slow corner, it ultimately loses time on corner exit, unlike the Ferrari.
Furthermore, the combination of Leclerc’s more cautious approach to driving, which is also supported by the exceptional stability of the Ferrari car, has enabled the Monegasque driver to secure the pole position. While the Ferrari driver was only the fastest in Sector 3, he managed to deliver a flawless and comprehensive lap, ultimately emerging as the fastest overall. On the other hand, Oscar Piastri had to take greater risks in the last corners in an attempt to narrow the time gap in his favor.
McLaren once again proved their speed in qualifying, yet fell short of delivering a flawless lap in Q3. Notably, Lando Norris outperformed Carlos Sainz with an impressive ideal lap. McLaren had the potential to secure the first and third positions, but ultimately had to settle for second and fourth places.
Nevertheless, Leclerc’s well-earned pole position is truly deserving, considering the exceptional lap he executed to make up for the setbacks in Sector 1 against Mercedes and Sector 2 against McLaren.
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Due to his excessive risks, Max Verstappen’s final Q3 attempt was unsuccessful as he hit the wall at the exit of Turn 1, resulting in a P6 finish.
After an impressive Sector 1 on his initial attempt, the Dutchman secured P3 just +0.149s behind Leclerc. However, due to not having a final lap to contend for pole position, he was surpassed by Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, and George Russell, resulting in a demotion to P6.
As per the usual in Free Practice, the Red Bull outperformed Ferrari only in Sector 1. However, as the session progressed, it became evident that the SF24 excelled in slow corner exits, traction, and top speed, indicating that the RB20 is no longer the leading contender on the grid. Similar to Piastri, Verstappen had to adopt a more aggressive approach compared to Leclerc, benefiting from a more controllable car and less pressure towards the end of Sector 3.
The Red Bull falls short compared to both Ferrari and McLaren, as it relies on external factors like Nico Hülkenberg’s slipstreaming at Imola to compete at the highest level.
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