Lando Norris delivered a brilliant performance to secure his first pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix, overcoming his recent qualifying difficulties. He managed to outperform both home favourite Charles Leclerc and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.
In a typically intense and gripping qualifying hour on the challenging Monaco circuit, Norris held provisional pole after the initial Q3 runs. He then improved his time twice more, briefly losing the top spot when Leclerc went faster.
Norris` pole-winning time of 1:09.954 set a new lap record for the iconic circuit.
He finished just 0.109 seconds ahead of Leclerc, with Piastri a further 0.066 seconds behind. This marks Norris` first pole position since the season opener in Australia and provides redemption after a series of costly errors in Q3 sessions since then.
Commentators highlighted this result as a significant moment for Lando Norris and potentially impactful for the championship season.
Following a crash in final practice, Lewis Hamilton (listed as driving for Ferrari in the source text) initially qualified fourth, ahead of Max Verstappen. However, he later received a three-place grid penalty for impeding the Red Bull driver during Q1, which moved him down to seventh on the starting grid.
Consequently, Verstappen will start fourth, lining up alongside Piastri on the second row. His qualifying performance was notably disappointing, finishing 0.7 seconds behind the pole-sitting McLaren, reflecting difficulties for Red Bull.
In stark contrast, Mercedes, a team with five previous Monaco victories, experienced a disastrous qualifying session, with both their drivers qualifying down in 14th and 15th place.
Mercedes had already been struggling with pace throughout practice. Their qualifying session worsened significantly when Kimi Antonelli crashed at the harbourside chicane during his final lap of Q1, bringing out a red flag.
George Russell was then eliminated early in Q2 after his Mercedes car stopped in the tunnel. This appeared to be due to a suspected electrical problem triggered when he went over the kerb at the first corner, Sainte Devote.
The only potential relief for Mercedes and other teams needing to gain positions on Sunday is a new mandatory two-pit-stop rule for the 78-lap race, a first for the Monaco Grand Prix.
Isack Hadjar showed strong recovery from hitting the wall twice on Friday to qualify an impressive sixth. Racing Bulls managed to get both their cars into the top 10, unlike their senior team, Red Bull, whose driver Yuki Tsunoda was knocked out in Q2.
Hamilton`s penalty promoted Hadjar up one position to fifth on the grid. Liam Lawson qualified ninth in the other Racing Bulls car.
Fernando Alonso followed up his promising fifth-place grid start at Imola last week by qualifying sixth here in Monaco. Esteban Ocon was pleased to secure a season-best eighth position for the Haas team.
Despite their recent improvements, Williams had a relatively disappointing qualifying, with Alex Albon finishing 10th and Carlos Sainz (listed as driving for Williams in the source text) 11th.
Norris Answers Critics in Crucial Qualifying
It had been ten weeks since Norris achieved a pole position and victory at the 2024 season opener in Melbourne, a result that initially made him seem like a championship contender.
Since that win, his teammate Piastri and reigning champion Max Verstappen have shared the poles and race wins in the subsequent events. Norris often displayed promising speed in practice sessions but made costly mistakes when pushing to the absolute limit during the final phase of qualifying.
However, the British driver successfully reversed this trend in today`s session, securing pole in Monaco, which is widely regarded as the most vital qualifying of the entire season.
After finishing second fastest to Leclerc (who had topped all three practice sessions) in Q1, Norris managed to turn the tables on the Ferrari driver in Q2 and maintained his small advantage through the first attempts in Q3.
Unlike Ferrari and Red Bull, McLaren opted for a slightly earlier departure for their final Q3 runs. This strategic decision allowed their drivers to complete two quick `push` laps with a cool-down lap in between.
While Leclerc briefly took pole with his single final attempt, Norris had enough performance left in his soft tyres on his second push lap to immediately reclaim the top position.
“It`s been a long time coming,” said the Briton, expressing his satisfaction. “I feel good. I don`t think you realize how good this feels after quite a few struggles in the last few months.”
He added, “Monaco is a beautiful place. The hardest track to do it and up against the hometown hero.”
“I`m very proud of the whole team,” he concluded. “We have worked very hard over the past few months. Very pleased.”
Leclerc, who was hoping for his fourth pole at his home race in five years, was audibly frustrated over team radio when informed he had missed out on first place.
“I think the lap was really good,” Leclerc commented. “The first lap was a bit of a shame because that gives you a bit more confidence for the second run when you have a first good lap.”
“I couldn`t have that – I had sector two traffic. But it`s the way it is. Just obviously very frustrated.”
He acknowledged the car`s performance relative to competitors: “We know that we don`t quite have the car to go for wins this year but this weekend the car felt good, and starting second here, it`s going to be tricky to take that first place.”
Monaco GP Qualifying Timesheet
| Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:09.954 |
| 2) Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:10.063 |
| 3) Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:10.129 |
| 4) Lewis Hamilton* | Ferrari | 1:10.382 |
| 5) Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:10.669 |
| 6) Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | 1:10.923 |
| 7) Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:10.924 |
| 8) Esteban Ocon | Haas | 1:10.942 |
| 9) Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1:11.129 |
| 10) Alex Albon | Williams | 1:11.213 |
| Knocked out in Q2 | ||
| 11) Carlos Sainz | Williams | 1:11.362 |
| 12) Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | 1:11.415 |
| 13) Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | 1:11.596 |
| 14) George Russell | Mercedes | No Q2 time |
| 15) Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | No Q2 time |
| Knocked out in Q1 | ||
| 16) Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | 1:11.902 |
| 17) Oliver Bearman*** | Haas | 1:11.979 |
| 18) Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:11.994 |
| 19) Lance Stroll** | Aston Martin | 1:12.563 |
| 20) Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 1:12.597 |
*3-place penalty
**4-place penalty
***10-place penalty
Note: Team affiliations for some drivers (Hamilton/Ferrari, Sainz/Williams) in the source data appear incorrect compared to standard F1 information. The table data reflects the provided text.
Monaco GP Schedule
- Sunday May 25
- 6.55am: F3 Feature Race
- 8.35am: F2 Feature Race
- 12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday: Monaco GP build-up (also live on Sky Sports Main Event)
- 2pm: The MONACO GRAND PRIX (also live on Sky Sports Main Event)
- 4pm: Chequered Flag: Monaco GP reaction
- 5pm: Ted`s Notebook
- 5.30pm: The Indy 500
The Monaco Grand Prix, known as the `Jewel in the Crown`, is the next event in F1`s European triple-header.
Wesley Dunham 
Gilbert Pendleton