Monaco – Qualifications: Ricciardo clinches the highly coveted pole position

The prestigious Monaco qualifying session took place in ideal weather conditions. The track had never been as hot all weekend, with nearly 50 degrees on the asphalt at 3 pm, just as the green light for Q1 was given.

Q1: The bill is steep for Verstappen!

Suspense was in the air, especially on the Red Bull side. After his crash at the end of FP3, Max Verstappen had to wait for his mechanics to repair his car. The Dutchman was forced to change his gearbox: the first major piece of information, the young Red Bull driver received a five-place grid penalty. The second was even more significant: the mechanics could not get his car back on track! With just minutes remaining, Verstappen officially conceded. The #33 lost everything in his accident two hours earlier.

Time ticking down in Q1 and Max is just a spectator #MonacoGP 🇲🇨 #F1 pic.twitter.com/eOToU2IFyM

— Formula 1 (@F1) May 26

Powerless, he watched from the garage as the battle for passage to Q2 unfolded. Five minutes before the end, Hartley, Ericsson, Stroll, and Magnussen occupied the other spots in the red zone. The local contender was also under the threat of elimination, but Charles Leclerc put in a big lap to secure his place, just like Valtteri Bottas, who was only saved in the final moments.

#MonacoGP 🇲🇨 | Qualifying [Q1]

Leclerc exceptional P9 💪

But he did have quite a scare 😳 #F1 pic.twitter.com/xZRcwMo3xk

— Secteur F1 🚥 (@Secteur_F1) 26 May

At the top of the timesheet, Daniel Ricciardo made a mark by setting the fastest time in Q1 with 1:12.013. Vettel and Bottas followed in P2 and P3. Good news for the French side: all three French drivers advanced to Q2. Romain Grosjean and Pierre Gasly made an impression in their teams by outperforming their teammates, who were eliminated in Q1.

Drivers eliminated in Q1: 16. Hartley / 17. Ericsson / 18. Stroll / 19. Magnussen / 20. Verstappen

Q2: Ocon and Gasly put on a great show and make it to Q3!

The session began with a gamble. The Mercedes driver duo dared to take a chance with the purple-striped tires, the ultra-softs. The rest of the grid still competing was on hyper-softs. Daniel Ricciardo once again set the first major benchmark: 1:11.353. Sebastian Vettel followed closely behind, just a tenth and a half away. In doing so, the Australian further raised the absolute track record in the Principality.

On the Mercedes side, the ultra-soft tire operation was proving difficult. Lewis Hamilton was only in 10th position with eight minutes remaining. Valtteri Bottas, for his part, was only 14th. Meanwhile, the British driver mentioned a lack of grip via his radio.

Here goes!! Kicking off Q2. P11 and P14 on the UltraSoft… #MonacoGP pic.twitter.com/L3GJzdZ3yS

— Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) May 26

It was therefore only natural that the four-time world champion opted for the hyper-softs, attempting his last series of laps. Having dropped to 11th after his pit stop, Lewis Hamilton was back in calmer waters, in third position. Valtteri Bottas followed suit, in fifth position. As a result, two drivers temporarily dropped out of the Top 10: Carlos Sainz and Pierre Gasly.

Another committed Frenchman, Esteban Ocon remained in a good position. The Force India driver had achieved a very satisfying time two minutes before the end, at 1:12.188: enough to advance to Q3! The tricolor camp was definitely smiling, with Gasly’s qualification by less than a tenth. The Norman edged out Nico Hülkenberg at the last moment, who was eleventh and the first eliminated. Stoffel Vandoorne also lost significantly with his twelfth place, while Fernando Alonso made it to Q3 (8th). As for Romain Grosjean, he could do nothing, in fifteenth position. He might harbor a small disappointment, having been beaten by the local favorite, Charles Leclerc, by just one thousandth of a second.

Zoom zoom

Ocon up to sixth in Q2 #MonacoGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/9JGqQQmstQ

— Formula 1 (@F1) May 26 /f1/actualite/22719-monaco-essais-libres-3-ricciardo-toujours-en-tete-verstappen-tape-le-rail-.html

Still leading, Daniel Ricciardo finished the session with an improvement: 1:11.278!

Drivers eliminated in Q2: 11. Hülkenberg / 12. Vandoorne / 13. Sirotkin / 14. Leclerc / 15. Grosjean

Q3: Ricciardo breaks the 1:11 barrier!

Maximum tension in the Principality as they face the final part of the session against the clock. All on hyper-softs, the drivers went out without exception to set a first time. Lewis Hamilton remained at the top for a few seconds before Daniel Ricciardo clocked in at 1:10.810. The margin on the first run is colossal: four-tenths of a second gap to Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, a chasm! Behind them, Kimi Räikkönen took fourth place and Bottas fifth. Carlos Sainz took sixth place before returning to the pits.

After a short break of a few minutes, the wild beasts were unleashed once again. There was no surprise at the top of the time sheet. **Daniel Ricciardo achieved the second pole of his career**, the second in Monaco after the one he secured in 2016. Small disappointment, albeit anecdotal, the Australian did not improve his last run. But behind him, Sebastian Vettel closed in by two-tenths and secured second place. Third, Lewis Hamilton could not improve. Behind this formidable trio, Räikkönen stayed ahead of Bottas.

The battle among other drivers turned in favor of a Frenchman… Esteban Ocon clinched sixth place under the checkered flag! The Force India driver achieved his best position of the year on a starting grid. Alonso, Sainz, Pérez, and Gasly completed this princely top 10 in order. The Toro Rosso driver can also be satisfied with reaching Q3 for the second time in his career after his achievement in Bahrain.

In the end, Daniel Ricciardo dominated all timed sessions since the start of the weekend. Only one session remains, the most important one: tomorrow’s race. Stay tuned on our site to discover the reactions of the main protagonists of the day!

Q3 CLASSIFICATION: Can anyone catch @danielricciardo? 🤔#MonacoGP 🇲🇨 #F1 pic.twitter.com/Pmbbhxu5GM

— Formula 1 (@F1) 26 May

From our special correspondent in Monaco