Lando Norris hit out at Monaco Grand Prix race organisers on Saturday for what he labelled an “unacceptable” attempt to sort out a bizarre issue with stickers at the street circuit, which are being ripped off the barriers by cars whistling past. The issue almost cost the British driver his entire Monaco weekend as he scraped through Q1 on Saturday en route to qualifying fourth for Sunday’s race.
But it is Red Bull whose season continues to come unstuck on the evidence of a fascinating qualifying session. Championship leader Max Verstappen could only put his car sixth on the grid in the most important shootout of the year as Red Bull’s suddenly skittish car continued to bounce and slide all over the place.
Verstappen was beaten not only by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who took pole for the third time in four years, and by Leclerc’s team mate Carlos Sainz, but also by both McLarens and even – horror of horrors – a Mercedes in the shape of George Russell.
No wonder the triple world champion looked baffled by the end of the day. “It feels like I’m driving a go-kart with no suspension,” Verstappen said. Not words one expected to hear about the RB20 four weeks ago when the Dutch driver was striding to his fourth victory in five races in Shanghai.
In truth, this qualifying result had been coming. Verstappen experienced similar car struggles in Miami and Imola but somehow managed to find answers, partly through his own genius. But as the saying goes, if you keep sticking your head in at the hairdressers sooner or later you are going to end up with a haircut.
Verstappen has not looked comfortable all weekend. A difficult session ended when he hit the wall coming out of Sainte Devote at the start of his final lap, and had to abort.
“We tried a lot of things and nothing made it better so I was stuck, there is nothing you could do,” he complained afterwards. “You can see in the second sector we are so bad because when I touch the kerbs it upsets the car. It was incredibly difficult.
“It is jumping around a lot and not absorbing the bumps or kerb strikes. In the last corner, the amount of times I almost jumped into the wall was incredible. We have had this problem since 2022, so it is not something new. For the past few years we have had a car advantage so it gets masked. But with everyone catching up, when you don’t improve your weakest point you get found out. It is a fundamental problem so it will not get fixed in weeks.”
This will be music to the ears of those hoping for a championship fight this year. Could there be shades of Brawn GP in 2009, when Jenson Button raced into an early lead and then clung on as his rivals gained ground? Probably not. Red Bull are seasoned competitors whereas Brawn did not have two pennies to rub together. But still, Red Bull’s rivals are undoubtedly gaining ground.
Leclerc has been the form driver all weekend and the locals will be praying the Monegasque can lift his home race curse. He should do so, starting from pole. Mind you, Leclerc has twice taken pole here before and twice he has failed to convert. If he does make it third time lucky, the Ferrari driver would be only the second Monegasque to win his home race and the first since the World Championship was created in 1950. Louis Chiron, whose bust stands by the swimming pool, won here in a Bugatti in 1931.
McLaren will push Ferrari. Oscar Piastri produced a brilliant lap to take second on the grid, while Norris declared himself “happy with fourth” behind Carlos Sainz. The Briton was more concerned about the advertising ‘stickers’ which have been coming off the barriers this weekend as the cars whoosh past and which got stuck under his car in Q1.
“I had to pit to get them off,” he complained. “It just shouldn’t happen in Formula One. We complained yesterday and they said they were going to fix it. But it obviously wasn’t fixed. It’s a shame when you’re just having to get lucky. And I was lucky I had enough time otherwise it would have ruined my whole qualifying. It’s unacceptable. But I think it was a good day for us. I’m looking on the bright side.”
More than Verstappen, certainly. Asked what he could do from sixth on the grid, at the toughest track for overtaking in Formula One, the Dutchman was nothing if not blunt. “F— knows,” he replied. “I am pushing flat-out. The car is super tricky. It is on a knife edge.” This season is getting more and more interesting.
Final positions after qualifying
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Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 1min 10.270secs
-
Oscar Piastri (Aus) McLaren 1:10.424
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Carlos Sainz Jr (Spa) Ferrari 1:10.518
-
Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1:10.542
-
George Russell (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:10.543
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Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:10.567
-
Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:10.621
-
Yuki Tsunoda (Jpn) RB 1:10.858
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Alexander Albon (Tha) Williams 1:10.948
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Pierre Gasly (Fra) Alpine 1:11.311
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Esteban Ocon (Fra) Alpine 1:11.285
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Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Haas F1 1:11.440
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Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) RB 1:11.482
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Lance Stroll (Can) Aston Martin 1:11.563
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Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1:11.725
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Fernando Alonso (Spa) Aston Martin 1:12.019
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Logan Sargeant (USA) Williams 1:12.020
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Sergio Perez (Mex) Red Bull 1:12.060
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Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Kick Sauber 1:12.512
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Guanyu Zhou (Chn) Kick Sauber 1:13.028
Monaco Grand Prix qualifying: As it happened
05:12 PM BST
Celebrations for Leclerc and Ferrari
Another epic Formula 1 milestone 🙌
7️⃣3️⃣ years after our first, that’s our 2️⃣5️⃣0️⃣th pole position in the sport ❤️ pic.twitter.com/tn9CROX4JI
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) May 25, 2024
05:10 PM BST
A disappointed Max Verstappen speaking to Sky
05:07 PM BST
Hitting the wall
Max Verstappen will start tomorrow’s race in sixth and his final flying lap was ruined at turn one as he made contact with the wall:
05:04 PM BST
Lando Norris speaking to Sky
05:01 PM BST
A happy James Vowles
The Williams team principal will be happy with Alex Albon’s qualifying performance but will be hoping that his lead driver does not receive a penalty.
05:00 PM BST
Lewis Hamilton a little confused
It felt great yesterday. We have been working really hard to improve this car and from the get-go it felt great. We obviously benefitted yesterday and this morning. We are not making any drastic changes or anything like that.
The team have worked really hard back at the factory to bring an upgrade to the last two races and also an upgrade this weekend but we only have one, which George has.
I anticipated it would be difficult to outqualify George because he has the upgraded component but it’s great to see we are bringing upgrades.
Once we got to Qualifying, I don’t understand. I already know automatically that I’m going to lose two tenths going into Qualifying. That’s definitely frustrating and something I don’t have an answer for. I’m not driving any different. The laps were great. Just lacking for some reason.
04:54 PM BST
The thoughts of Alex Albon
The Williams driver will start ninth tomorrow, although he has been summoned to the stewards over potentially impeding Carlos Sainz. Here he is speaking to Sky:
“I trust in him [James Vowles] and the board and I enjoy being here” 🤩
Alex Albon speaks on why he decided to sign a contract extension with Williams 👇 pic.twitter.com/s1VaJUhsqa
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) May 25, 2024
04:48 PM BST
Toto Wolff speaking to Sky
04:42 PM BST
The thoughts of Red Bull team principal Christian Horner
It’s been a struggle all weekend. The car hasn’t suited the characteristics of this circuit. Up until that last run, anything between second and sixth was on but unfortunately we didn’t get that last run in.
The first sector was strong for us. It was mainly the tight hairpin, then Turn Five and Turn 10. The race is pretty much done barring Safety Cars. But we will come back fighting.
Our race pace has been pretty good but whether we can demonstrate that, I’m not sure depending on how the traffic plays out.
04:36 PM BST
Ferrari team principal Fred Vassuer talking to Sky
The race is tomorrow, you don’t score points on Saturday, we just have to stay calm and prepare for tomorrow.
It’s a good statement, a pole in Monaco is always the best position for the race, and in itself a good challenge and a good reward. But now, the most important thing is tomorrow and we have to do a job tomorrow.
The challenge is to continue to improve with the track and this is not easy because when you are leading the field you have quite a different sensation that it is going well and you don’t have to push much more.
But with the evolution, you have to improve ever single lap and be like this until the end.
04:31 PM BST
George Russell speaking to Sky
04:28 PM BST
Starting grid for tomorrow
-
Charles Leclerc
-
Oscar Piastri
-
Carlos Sainz
-
Lando Norris
-
George Russell
-
Max Verstappen
-
Lewis Hamilton
-
Yuki Tsunoda
-
Alex Albon
-
Pierre Gasly
-
Esteban Ocon
-
Nico Hulkenberg
-
Daniel Ricciardo
-
Lance Stroll
-
Kevin Magnussen
-
Fernando Alonso
-
Logan Sargeant
-
Sergio Perez
-
Valtteri Bottas
-
Zhou Guanyu
04:24 PM BST
Relive Leclerc’s pole lap
04:22 PM BST
Quotes from Carlos Sainz, who will start third tomorrow
It was an improvement for me. I’ve been struggling all weekend with confidence and feeling with the car, so overall to step it up and be P3 is a step forward.
I’m not entirely happy because I wish I could have been fighting for pole position but the truth is Charles has been doing an outstanding job.
The car has been amazing all weekend and he managed to extract the most from it, so I’m happy for him.
On the car’s long run pace:
I looked very quick on the long runs. For some reason I’ve bee struggling on the short runs but the long runs have been better. I’m confident tomorrow the pace on the long run will be good.
It’s just a matter of track position here and we lost it with not a great Qualy position.
It’s Monaco. Anything can happen and we will give it our best shot. The priority will be to win with Charles tomorrow.
04:17 PM BST
Second place Oscar Piastri
I think if you took the second half of my first lap in Q3 and the first half of my second one, it would have been enough.
A couple of mistakes at the end, but credit to Charles. He’s been quick all weekend and at certain points I thought we were going to get close to him.
It’s nice to be starting on the front row…and what better colours to do it in than these.
As optimistic as I want to be, overtaking around here is not easy. We’re starting from a good spot and have a chance for a good day tomorrow.
04:12 PM BST
The thoughts of pole-sitter Charles Leclerc
It was nice. The feeling after a Qualifying lap is very special here. Really happy about the lap. The excitement is so high. It feels really good.
However, now I know more often than not in the past, that Qualifying is not everything.
As much as it helps, we need to put everything together for Sunday’s race. In the past here we didn’t manage to do so, but we are in a stronger position and we are a stronger team. I’m sure we can achieve great things tomorrow and the win is the target.
On what he needs to do tomorrow:
I need a good launch off the grid, then once we do that, hopefully Carlos can have a great start and follow me into Turn One.
If we are one-two, we can manage that as a team. That would be the perfect scenario. But whatever happens we need to bring that victory home.
04:07 PM BST
Great performance from Piastri
He came very close to pole and the Australian will start on the front row alongside Leclerc.
04:05 PM BST
Live from Monaco
Great grid. Can Charles Leclerc lift his Monaco curse? The received wisdom here is that the pole man always wins but Leclerc has twice taken pole here and twice he has failed to win. If he can make it third time lucky, the Ferrari driver would be only the second Monegasque to win his home race and the first since the world championship was created in 1950. Louis Chiron, whose bust stands by the swimming pool, won here in a Bugatti in 1931. Either way, it’s a fun grid with both Ferraris, both McLarens, and even a Mercedes, ahead of Max Verstappen whose run of consecutive poles (8) is over. It looks as if his championship lead will be cut tomorrow but let’s see.
04:05 PM BST
Top 10
-
Leclerc
-
Piastri
-
Sainz
-
Norris
-
Russell
-
Verstappen
-
Hamilton
-
Tsunoda
-
Albon
-
Gasly
04:02 PM BST
Verstappen hits the wall
Going into turn one on his fastest lap, the Dutchman hits the wall and has to abort his lap. He will start tomorrow’s race down in sixth. He has not been comfortable all weekend and his issues continue.
04:01 PM BST
Leclerc takes pole
Sainz and Norris go third and fourth respectively, so they cannot deny Leclerc from a home pole position. He has been rapid all weekend, having topped all three practice sessions and now qualifying on pole. Will the Leclerc Monaco curse end tomorrow?
04:00 PM BST
Leclerc improves
The Monegasque driver improves his time and stays ahead of Piastri.
03:59 PM BST
Hamilton across the line
Lewis crosses the line in fourth, but he will not stay there. Russell then goes third.
03:57 PM BST
Pole at stake
Who will grab pole position for tomorrow?
03:56 PM BST
Albon seventh
The Williams driver goes out before everyone else and puts his car into seventh for the time being, but that will probably be it for Albon.
03:54 PM BST
Top five with five minutes left
-
Leclerc 1:10.418
-
Piastri +0.026
-
Verstappen +0.149
-
Sainz +0.255
-
Russell +0.500
03:53 PM BST
Leclerc fastest
After the first runs, Leclerc sets a 1:10.4 and Piastri is just under three hundredths behind. Verstappen is the last man across the line on his first run and goes third. Advantage Leclerc so far.
03:50 PM BST
No traffic issues
With only 10 drivers remaining there should be no complaints of any traffic.
03:49 PM BST
Two new sets
A number of the drivers challenging for pole have two new sets of soft tyres for Q3 but one man who seemingly does not is Norris.
03:48 PM BST
Q3 under way
The green light appears at the end of the pit-lane and the final part of qualifying is go, go, go!
03:46 PM BST
Albon and Gasly in
The Williams and Alpine drivers are into the final part of qualifying, with Gasly pulling out a good late lap to move out of the danger zone and into Q3. They will not be challenging for pole but it is a great effort from both to be here. As we know, starting position is vital around Monaco.
03:42 PM BST
Norris quickest in Q2
Lando was fastest in the second part of qualifying, just ahead of Verstappen and his teammate Piastri.
03:41 PM BST
Five out in Q2
11. Ocon
12. Hulkenberg
13. Ricciardo
14. Stroll
15. Magnussen
03:40 PM BST
Gasly through
The Frenchman was in trouble but he goes fifth fastest and makes it into Q3.
03:39 PM BST
No shocks?
With under a minute remaining, it does not look like we will get a huge shock in Q2.
03:38 PM BST
McLaren one, two
Piastri had gone fastest but Norris has just pipped in at the top of the timesheets. Piastri has reported on the team radio that he has hit a wall. There are just two minutes remaining in Q2.
03:35 PM BST
Hamilton into P3
The seven-time world champion is into third place but he will know that with the track ramping up, he is not assured of his place in Q3 just yet.
03:34 PM BST
Danger zone with five minutes to go
11. Stroll
12. Albon
13. Magnussen
14. Hulkenberg
15. Ricciardo
03:31 PM BST
Verstappen back ahead
It was Verstappen, then Sainz, now Verstappen is back into first. The two Mercedes come across the line at the bottom end of the top 10.
03:30 PM BST
Sainz top
Verstappen has been usurped at the top by Sainz, who goes a couple of hundredths ahead of the Dutchman.
03:29 PM BST
Verstappen fastest
The Dutchman goes to the top of the timesheets with a 1:11.1 He is just ahead of Leclerc and Norris.
03:26 PM BST
Q2 go, go, go!
We are under way in the second part of qualifying.
03:26 PM BST
Russell fastest in Q1
The man from Kings Lynn was quickest in the first part of qualifying, with Piastri and Hamilton just behind him in second and third respectively.
03:25 PM BST
Live from Monaco
Always love reading AA Gill’s ‘The Scumball Rally’ over the course of Monaco weekend. Enjoyed it again this morning. “Monte Carlo is a money puddle. A cash delta. It is as if all the wealth from the rich northern European pastures has run down the Continent and found its way here, to form a sort of mangrove swamp of avarice, before running into the Mediterranean. Maybe swamp is the wrong term. Maybe some of you like swamps. Perhaps sewage outlet would be a better description.” Haha. Brilliant. Whatever your view of Monaco, the GP is an extraordinary experience. Had a fun morning checking out all the boats and the punters, the poseurs and conspicuous consumption. The celebs. You do have to double-take sometimes. Think I saw Jack Nowell on the floating Red Bull paddock home earlier. Definitely saw Steve McManaman yesterday.
03:24 PM BST
Albon under investigation
03:21 PM BST
Bottom five in Q1
16. Alonso
17. Sargeant
18. Perez
19. Bottas
20. Sargeant
03:20 PM BST
Alonso and Perez out
Two big shocks as Red Bull’s Perez and Aston Martin’s Alonso are knocked out in the first part of qualifying.
03:19 PM BST
Norris into ninth
Not the best lap but Lando is out of the drop zone.
03:18 PM BST
Alonso and Norris at risk
The Spaniard cannot improve on his time for 13th, so he is at serious risk of being knocked out in Q1. Norris starts his final lap, starting it in 18th. A yellow flag now would be disastrous.
03:16 PM BST
Track getting faster
The time are always improving so plenty of drivers will be wanting to make sure they cross the line as late as possible. Norris and Perez are in the danger zone with just two minutes left.
03:14 PM BST
Leclerc fastest
The Monegasque driver goes top of the timesheets with a 1:11.6.
03:12 PM BST
Drop zone with five minutes left
16. Tsunoda
17. Ricciardo
18. Sargeant
19. Bottas
20. Zhou
03:11 PM BST
Perez struggling
One man who is in a little trouble with seven minutes left is Perez, who is down in 15th, just one place above the drop zone.
03:10 PM BST
Piastri goes fastest
The Australian has just set a 1:11.8 and is currently top of the timesheets.
03:09 PM BST
Bottom five as it stands
16. Ricciardo
17. Sargeant
18. Perez
19. Bottas
20. Zhou
03:08 PM BST
Top 10 with ten minutes to go
-
Verstappen
-
Russell
-
Sainz
-
Hulkenberg
-
Hamilton
-
Ocon
-
Magnussen
-
Norris
-
Piastri
-
Albon
03:06 PM BST
Ferraris out there now
Leclerc and Sainz came out a little later than everyone else. Leclerc goes seventh whereas Sainz’s first effort is not representative.
03:05 PM BST
Verstappen goes fastest, only temporarily
The Dutchman goes to the top of the timesheets with his first flying lap of a 1:12.7. However he is immediately usurped by the two Haas drivers and Piastri
03:03 PM BST
Everyone out there
All 20 drivers are now on track, meaning there will be plenty of traffic out there.
03:02 PM BST
Remaining patient
Ferrari have decided to stay patient and have not sent either driver out there, whereas Mercedes have got their duo out first. The risk of waiting is that yellow and red flags are so frequent in Monaco.
03:00 PM BST
Green light
Here we go, qualifying is under way. Plenty of drivers have been lined up in the pit-lane for a few minutes before the session officially got going.
02:57 PM BST
Ready for qualifying in Monaco
02:55 PM BST
Drivers getting ready
02:50 PM BST
10-minute klaxon
We are just 10 minutes away from arguably the most important Saturday of the season.
02:49 PM BST
Leclerc warming up with a bit of footie
The Monegasque driver does not look too stressed ahead of qualifying:
02:47 PM BST
Stars out in Monaco
Red Bull have two very special guests with them this weekend in the form of Liverpool and Netherlands captain Virgil van Dijk and South Africa rugby captain Siya Kolisi.
02:38 PM BST
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur speaking to Sky
“He’s experienced enough, now, to do a reset” 🔄
Fred Vasseur says Charles is ready to put the Monaco ‘curse’ behind him 🇲🇨 pic.twitter.com/ndgvTfhBhA
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) May 25, 2024
02:30 PM BST
Warning for Verstappen
The stewards have decided to give Max Verstappen a warning after driving unnecessarily slowly in practice three. Here is the full statement from the stewards:
The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 1 (Max Verstappen), team representative and reviewed video, team radio and in-car video evidence and determined that Car 1 was on a fast lap and had to abort the lap due to traffic at Turn 17.
He was then told to take the chequered flag by the team. There remained some time between the instruction and the chequered flag. He said that he also saw on the TV screens that there were 20 seconds left till the end of the session. He then proceeded to move off the racing line at the exit of Turn 19 and stayed to the extreme left, well off the racing line till he took the chequered flag for the session. While doing so, he travelled extremely slowly, at times at speeds as slow as 20 kph.
While what he did was not dangerous and did not impede other drivers, he was driving unnecessarily slowly on the start finish straight and that is a breach of Article 33.4 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations. We therefore issue a warning to the driver of Car 1 for this breach.
02:24 PM BST
Reprimand for Norris
We have some news from the stewards room. Lando Norris has been given a reprimand for causing a potentially dangerous situation by moving over on George Russell at the exit of the tunnel in final practice. Here are the full quotes from the stewards on the incident:
The Stewards heard from the driver of Car 4 (Lando Norris), the driver of Car 63 (George Russell), team representatives and reviewed video, team radio and in-car video evidence and determined that Car 4 deliberately moved towards Car 63 to express his displeasure at his lap being affected by Car 63 at the exit of the tunnel on the approach to Turn 10.
While in this instance the move was not dangerous, this sort of action could potentially lead to a dangerous situation and should be avoided. We therefore impose a reprimand on the driver of Car 4.
02:17 PM BST
Can Mercedes challenge for pole?
Toto Wolff has been speaking to Sky about Mercedes’s chances of a pole position this afternoon:
02:11 PM BST
McLaren’s special Senna livery
02:04 PM BST
Verstappen and Russell with the stewards
Mercedes’ George Russell is currently under the spotlight with the stewards after impeding McLaren’s Lando Norris going into turn ten coming out of the tunnel. Here is the incident:
Max Verstappen is also under investigation for driving unnecessarily slowly in final practice.
01:56 PM BST
The jewel in F1’s crown
Qualifying at Monaco; one of the most iconic days in the F1 calendar. The sun is shining on the Côte d’Azur and this is a day all drivers dream about from a very young age, pushing it to the very limit without ending up in the wall. Going into the weekend, it felt like it was wide open for pole and the race win and that definitely feels the case going into qualifying today.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, at his home circuit having grown up in Monaco, was fastest throughout both sessions on Friday and then fastest again in practice three this morning. Local boy Leclerc has never finished on the podium in any race around the streets of Monaco and the home fans will be cheering him on. He grew up in the city, taking the bus to school from Sainte-Dévote (turn one) up the hill towards Casino Square.
Leclerc has been on pole at Monaco before but not managed to convert it into a race win and the Monegasque driver understands the importance of qualifying today.
“I’ve had two poles in the past, but then the Sunday result wasn’t the one I wanted,” he acknowledged. “So if we manage to do [that], so which is the best starting place for Sunday, we’ll have to focus well on Sunday in order to put everything together to finally get that win.”
It has been a challenging weekend so far for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who was complaining about bouncing during the practice sessions on Friday. Verstappen has not been happy with his car all weekend and, speaking yesterday after second practice, he explained the issues he has been experiencing.
“It is not something I didn’t expect but it’s definitely at the higher end of the worst possible outcome of the weekend so far.
It’s just very difficult. There are a lot of bumps and kerbs and camber changes in the track and for us that is basically impossible to take. Every time we go over it, we lose a lot of lap time just because the car doesn’t ride well. There is also no really clear direction or solution to try and solve something like that.”
“Imola was completely different – different issues you can solve with set-up. These things you cannot solve with set-up because it is how the car is designed and there things you cannot change overnight, so we are kind of stuck with it. We will try to make it a little better but I don’t expect any miracles. (Ferrari) are miles ahead so I’m not even thinking about that, just want to solve the issues we have.”
Verstappen did finish second in practice three this morning, with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton in third. It has been a difficult start to the season for Hamilton, who will be joining Ferrari next season, but he has a good start to the weekend.
McLaren, who should be in the running for pole position this afternoon, are running a special livery this weekend in tribute to Ayrton Senna, who won around the streets of Monaco five times for the team and six in total.
Today is the most important qualifying session of the season. Who will come out on top?
Source Agencies
