Kimi Antonelli stole pole position in the dying seconds of qualifying for the Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix, beating Max Verstappen by just 43 milliseconds.
Several drivers entered qualifying for the F1 Monaco GP with a point to prove: Lando Norris after his electrical fault, as well as Franco Colapinto and Isack Hadjar after their crashes during practice.
With grid position vital for a good race on Sunday, all eyes were on Ferrari and Mercedes to see who would win the battle for pole position in the principality.
Q1
Perez led the cars out at the green light, track position vital for a clean lap. While an orderly queue, not many chose to wait at the end of the pit lane, instead filing out once around half the grid had ventured out. Somewhat unsurprisingly, the top four teams chose to wait in the garage until the last possible moment to exit the garage.
Once the first runs were complete, it was home hero Leclerc that led the times, from Lando Norris and Kimi Antonelli. The second Mercedes of Russell was uncharacteristically absent from proceedings, down in 12th before dropping to 17th.
Joining the Briton at the bottom of the order was Colapinto, the Aston Martins of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, and both Cadillacs. Russell had extracted himself back into the fringes of the top ten with a few minutes remaining before Gabriel Bortoleto made contact with the barriers at the entrance to the Nouvelle chicane, breaking the front suspension of his Audi.
When the session restarted after a short delay, the cars flurried out onto the circuit, though the top six all remained in their garages. At the chequered flag Sainz found a chunks of time to move from 19th to 10th. Both Haas’ were eliminated, along with both Cadillacs and Aston Martins.
Eliminated: Linblad, Ocon, Perez, Bearman, Bottas Alonso Stroll
Q2
The drivers were more keen to get on track at the start of Q2, with the two Alpines leading the field onto the track. An unsafe release for the Williams of Carlos Sainz was noted after Max Verstappen was forced to brake in the pits to avoid the Spainard.
Having topped the timesheets after the first runs, Leclerc dropped to ninth in Q2. Instead, it was Max Verstappen that ended up in the coveted top spot, before the he moved into second, with Norris and Antonelli also enjoying stints at the top of the timesheets.
The battle for a place in the top ten for the F1 Monaco GP was tight, just half a second separated 16th from 10th, leading to drivers pushing their cars to the limit. Audi looked to be a contender with Hulkemberg as the clock counted down, with both Williams, Racing Bulls, and Alpines also in the running, the second Red Bull of Isack Hadjar seemingly clear of the danger zone.
At the chequered flag, it was Lawson and Gasly who found the time on his final lap to progress to Q3, the others not able to make a difference to their Q3 prospects.
Eliminated: Albon, Sainz, Hulkenberg, Colapinto, Linblad, Bortoleto
Q3
With just 12 minutes on the clock in Q3, drovers rushed out onto the circuit for the most important Q3 of the year. Overtaking in Monaco comes at a premium, so anything outside the top four can lead to a frustrating afternoon.
The first runs proved intriguing. Leclerc was the first to set a benchmark time, but the McLarens quickly beat it, with Norris leading from Piastri. Hamilton set the fastest second sector and rocketed to the top of times by over two tenths of a second. But then came a battle royale, Antonelli moving into first, with Max Verstappen ending his first run just 0.001s behind the championship leader, hitting the wall on the exit of Rascasse.
Behind the top four came Russell who was still notably absent from proceedings at the front, followed by Hadjar, a seemingly off-the-pace Oscar Piastri, with Lawson, Gasly and Leclerc rounding out the top ten.
The final laps were a sight to behold, the drivers pushing their cars as close to the barriers as they dared. Home hero Leclerc was on the limit of adhesion, but jumped to the top of the timesheets, with the top three separated by less than a tenth of a second.
Norris and Verstappen were next, pushing their cars hard around the principality. Norris pitted and abandoned his lap, while Hamilton and Verstappen revived their rivalry briefly, before Kimi Antonelli surged to the top by just 43 milliseconds. Any opportunity Leclerc had to take pole position evaporated when he slammed into the barriers. Russell, Piastri, Norris, Gasly and Lawson rounded out the top ten.
Top 10: Antonelli, Verstappen, Hamilton, Leclerc, Hadjar, Russell, Piastri, Norris, Gasly, Lawson