Antonelli was a little all-over-the-shop in the first Qualifying session. The near-rookie who made the mistake though was Bortoleto who clipped a curb and nearly managed to stop in time but broke his suspension instead. He was stranded on the track and the session was stopped with a red flag. Some drivers appeared safe and in the pit lane, others went out to try and secure a spot in the top sixteen. The Williams' put in great laps for ninth and tenth. Bortoleto was through in fifteenth, which felt unfair. Out went Ocon, Perez, Bearman, Bottas, Alonso and Stroll. Is this the start of another awful weekend for Aston Martin? Where is the Newey magic we (and Fernando) were promised? It seems like Monaco is not a good track for the Haas as well.
The second session was uneventful. Williams had peaked and finished in eleventh and twelfth; they pushed too hard. Behind them were Hulkenberg, Colapinto, Linblad and Bortoleto. Fastest was Max Verstappen who suddenly was much quicker and Russell could only manage eighth.
With a couple of seconds to go, having not put in a particularly good lap so far, Leclerc took provisional pole. Up until then Antonelli and Verstappen had been quickest and there was still some time for them to do some good work. The Ferrari driver needed a crash. Verstappen did indeed get pole and then Hamilton took second place. The Mercedes drivers were still going...Just as Antonelli did take pole, Leclerc was pushing again but bumped the wall and gained a puncture. The top ten line-up would be Antonelli, Verstappen, Hamilton, Leclerc, Hadjar, Russell, Piastri, Norris, Gasly and Lawson.
The teenager was over the moon. Could he sustain focus and keep it on the black stuff for a whole Monaco race? Russell's response would also be interesting.
