In a dramatic qualifying session for the Monaco Grand Prix, Lando Norris secured second place on the grid for McLaren, finishing 0.3 seconds behind his teammate. The session was marked by a late shunt from Sergio Perez and a spin from Fernando Alonso, leading to a last-gasp scramble for drivers to set final qualifying simulation times.
Perez’s late shunt at the Variante Alta resulted in a red flag, leaving drivers scrambling to set a representative time. Only Norris was able to do so, putting him in a strong position for the race. Max Verstappen, on the other hand, will head into qualifying without a proper sighter on the soft tyres, having spent the early part of the session working on his car’s setup on medium tyres.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finished third and fourth, respectively, with their times set during the first third of the session. Despite attempting a late flying lap, Leclerc’s opening sector was slower than his personal best, and he backed off.
Oscar Piastri’s session-setting time of 1m15.529s came as the pack was preparing for their final fliers, but Perez’s accident cut these efforts short. Even if drivers had had more time, they were all set to do so on used rubber, including Norris at the head of the pack.
Perez lost control of his Red Bull as he bounced down to earth after hitting the kerbs at the Variante Alta’s first apex, sending him off into the gravel and the barriers. His medium tyre personal best meant he was shuffled down to 12th by those that did have time to improve pre-red flag one, including George Russell, who nipped into fifth ahead of Verstappen.
The other stoppage came as Fernando Alonso lost control of his Aston Martin, spinning off backwards into the barriers on the outside of the final corner.
As the dust settles, Norris is in a strong position for the race, while Verstappen will have to overcome the lack of a proper sighter on the soft tyres. The stage is set for a thrilling race in Monaco.
