Lando Norris achieved a remarkable pole position in Monaco, breaking the track record with a time of 1 minute, 9.954 seconds, surpassing a record set by Lewis Hamilton in 2019. This achievement comes as a relief for Norris, who struggled in prior qualifying sessions against his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. “It’s been a long time coming,” he remarked, reflecting on his frustrations in qualifying and his ongoing efforts to narrow Piastri’s 13-point lead in the standings.
During qualifying, Norris and local favorite Charles Leclerc exchanged the fastest times until Norris set a pace that clinched pole by 0.109 seconds, while Piastri qualified in third. Leclerc, who won last year’s Monaco Grand Prix, expressed disappointment at missing pole, noting the unique challenges posed by Monaco’s slow layout, which allowed Ferrari to adjust their setups.
Defending champion Max Verstappen, despite predicting challenges with Monaco’s low-speed nature, lined up fifth but starts fourth due to a penalty for Hamilton, who faced a three-place grid penalty after a radio mix-up led to him impeding Verstappen. The miscommunication caused Hamilton to lose a potential strong fourth-place starting position following a crash in practice that required significant repairs.
Mercedes faced frustrations during qualifying with George Russell starting 14th due to a breakdown, while his teammate Kimi Antonelli hit the wall and qualified 15th. Additionally, Haas rookie Oliver Bearman, initially 17th, was relegated to the back of the grid after receiving a 10-place penalty for overtaking under red flags. The upcoming race now presents uncertainty with new tire regulations requiring drivers to change tires at least twice, which could impact the traditionally crucial grid positions in Monaco.
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