F1 Monaco GP Grid Positions: Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli secured the premier starting slot for the Monaco Grand Prix following a spectacular final flying lap around the narrow streets of Monte Carlo. The championship leader edged out his nearest rivals during a highly tense final segment of qualifying, ensuring the best possible track position for Sunday's showpiece race.
1st Line: 1. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) | 2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
2nd Line: 3. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) | 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3rd Line: 5. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) | 6. George Russell (Mercedes)
4th Line: 7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) | 8. Lando Norris (McLaren)
5th Line: 9. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) | 10. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
6th Line: 11. Alex Albon (Williams) | 12. Carlos Sainz (Williams)
7th Line: 13. Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) | 14. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
8th Line: 15. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) | 16. Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi)
9th Line: 17. Esteban Ocon (TGR Haas) | 18. Sergio Pérez (Cadillac)
10th Line: 19. Oliver Bearman (TGR Haas) | 20. Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac)
11th Line: 21. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) | 22. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
The Italian teenager produced an extraordinary time of 1 minute 12.051 seconds to narrowly beat Red Bull racer Max Verstappen by a mere forty-three thousandths of a second.
“It was one of those laps that we call a magic lap. I was able to put it all together. It was such a close qualifying with Max," Antonelli told GPBlog.
The front-running pair will share the front row of the grid, comfortably clear of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who completed an impressive qualifying performance to take third place for Ferrari.
Home favourite Charles Leclerc will start alongside his veteran teammate on the second row after his final attempt to snatch the premier starting position ended in the barriers.
The Monegasque racer clipped the wall during the frantic closing moments of the session, heavily damaging the rear structure of his vehicle and ruining his final flying lap.
Further down the order, Red Bull junior Isack Hadjar secured an impressive fifth position ahead of Mercedes driver George Russell, who struggled for consistency throughout the afternoon.
The McLaren duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris locked out the fourth row of the grid, finishing ahead of Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson to complete the top ten.
The Williams pairing of Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz both missed out on the final shootout segment, settling for eleventh and twelfth places respectively after failing to improve.
Meanwhile, it was a completely disastrous session for Aston Martin, with veteran Fernando Alonso and teammate Lance Stroll languishing on the final row of the grid.
