Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc has secured the first place on the grid for the Monaco Grand Prix in his home country. The 26-year-old beat Oscar Piastri in the McLaren with the fastest lap of the Formula 1 qualification on Saturday in 1:10.270 minutes. Third place went to Carlos Sainz in the second Ferrari.
World champion and last year’s winner Max Verstappen had to settle for sixth place in the struggling Red Bull, almost three tenths of a second behind. Nico Hülkenberg drove his Haas racing car to twelfth place.
For the Monegasque Leclerc, it is already the third pole position in the city where he was born. However, he has not been able to take advantage of this in the race in the past. So far, the 2022 World Championship runner-up is still without a win or podium finish on one of the most traditional tracks on the racing calendar.
The first place on the grid is particularly important in Monaco, as overtaking maneuvers in the Grand Prix are very difficult on the narrow asphalt strip on the Côte d’Azur. Before the eighth race of the season on Sunday (3 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for Formula 1 and on Sky), Verstappen leads the World Championship standings with 161 points, ahead of Leclerc (113) and Sergio Perez (107) in the second Red Bull. Verstappen won on the Mediterranean coast last year and in 2021, and Perez was victorious on the challenging street circuit in 2022.
