Kimi Antonelli roared to the front and will be on pole for the Monaco Grand Prix, coaxing his Mercedes past Max Verstappen's Red Bull by 0.047 seconds, the Italian's fourth pole of the season in six races as he seeks his fifth straight win in the F1 Championship.
Antonelli found it Saturday, after hovering in fourth and fifth in Practices 1 and 2 Friday, while the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, in his home race, were top two. But Antonelli had the best time in P3, ahead of qualifying Saturday, and followed through into qualifying.
The Ferraris do have the second row on grid, with Hamilton P3 and Leclerc P4. Verstappen's teammate Isack Hadjar took P5, and George Russell has the other Mercedes in P6. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris have their McLarens in P7 and P8, and Pierre Gasly (Alpine) and Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) complete the top 10.
My take: This race will be determined off the start and into Turn 1. overtaking is nearly impossible on this circuit, so the grid positions are very close to order of finish, barring technical problems, which is a real concern this year. But the Ferraris have been the best cars off the grid start, so it would not be a surprise to see one or both get to the top through the first turn. From there, it's just managing the one-stop race (2025 was a mandated two-stop).
THE ASYLUM
Antonelli on pole in Monaco
Kimi Antonelli roared to the front and will be on pole for the Monaco Grand Prix, coaxing his Mercedes past Max Verstappen's Red Bull by 0.047 seconds, the Italian's fourth pole of the season in six races as he seeks his fifth straight win in the F1 Championship.
Antonelli found it Saturday, after hovering in fourth and fifth in Practices 1 and 2 Friday, while the Ferraris of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, in his home race, were top two. But Antonelli had the best time in P3, ahead of qualifying Saturday, and followed through into qualifying.
The Ferraris do have the second row on grid, with Hamilton P3 and Leclerc P4. Verstappen's teammate Isack Hadjar took P5, and George Russell has the other Mercedes in P6. Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris have their McLarens in P7 and P8, and Pierre Gasly (Alpine) and Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls) complete the top 10.
My take: This race will be determined off the start and into Turn 1. overtaking is nearly impossible on this circuit, so the grid positions are very close to order of finish, barring technical problems, which is a real concern this year. But the Ferraris have been the best cars off the grid start, so it would not be a surprise to see one or both get to the top through the first turn. From there, it's just managing the one-stop race (2025 was a mandated two-stop).
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