© Getty Images2024 Monaco Grand Prix - Qualifying ReportIt was a tricky afternoon for the Bulls in qualifying for the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix.
Maxissettostartinsixthplaceonthegrid,afterabrushwiththebarriersforcedhimtoabandonhisfinalflyer.ChecomeanwhilewentoutoftheopeningsessionandqualifyinginP18.
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The final hour of practice saw the Bulls take a step forward from their tough Friday sessions, though the gains weren’t immediately apparent thanks to a halt ten minutes in when Sauber’s Valtteri Bottas broke his front suspension on the wall at the exit of the Swimming Pool section.
The resulting red flag spell was brief, however, and when the session resumed Max and Checo worked through longer runs during which they tried to rectify the balance issues from the day before. After moving to new Soft tyres for qualifying runs, Max rose to P2 at the flag, 0.197s behind pacesetter Charles Leclerc thanks to a lap of 1:11.566. Checo, meanwhile, posted a solid time of 1:11.923 to claim fifth place on the timesheet behind McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and third-placed Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
At the start of Q1, Max’s first cautious lap of 1:12.790 put him fourth on the timesheet, while Checo found himself in P16 after posting a time of 1:13.981. Both exploratory laps were well off their FP3 efforts, however, and there was more to come as Haas’ Nico Hülkenberg set the pace at 1:12.416.
With his circuit assessment complete, Max’s next lap was more potent and the champion claimed top spot with a time of 1:12.084. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri then dipped below the 1m12s mark to take P1 - a tenth clear of Max. Checo’s second lap was less successful, however, and after posting a time of 1:12.698 he only rose to P15.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, quickest in final practice moved to the top of the table on 1:11.653, but Max was also improving, and as Leclerc was beaten by Russell’s 1:11.492, Max jumped up to third place with a lap of 1:11.711.
There were improvements coming all over the timesheet, however, and as the final flying laps were completed, Max slid down the order. But while the champion’s eventual P7 saw him comfortably through to Q2, Checo was in trouble. He only managed to climb to P14 with his third flyer and as better times came in, he slid into the drop zone, a good final flyer became crucial. Initially, the run looked to be yielding results, but as the lap progressed the gains were reversed and Checo was eliminated in P18, behind 16th-placed Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso and Williams’ P17 man Logan Sargeant. Ruled out behind Checo were Sauber pair Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu.
Checo Pushing Hard© Getty Images
At the start of Q2 it was Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz who set the pace with the Spaniard taking P1 0.019s ahead of Max thanks to a lap of 1:11.177. Max, though, was targeting a second flyer on the same tyres and when the championship leader crossed the line again, he took top spot with a lap of 1:11.019.
However, with four minutes remaining, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri hit top spot with a lap of 1:10.756 and when Leclerc slotted into second, a little over six hundredths of a second behind, and Russell took third a tenth off the Ferrari driver, Max dropped to P4.
The action wasn’t over, though, and seconds later Lando Norris took his McLaren to the top of the pile, two hundredths ahead of Piastri.
Max, now down in fifth, was winding up for another attempt and pushing hard the championship leader hauled his RB20 up to second place, 0.012s behind Norris thanks to a lap of 1:10.745.
Further back, though, there was no place in the top 10 shootout for Alpine’s Esteban Ocon, Haas’ Nico Hülkenberg, Visa Cash App RB’s Daniel Ricciardo, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll or Kevin Magnussen in the second Haas, with all five dropping out at the end of the session.
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In the first runs of Q3, it was Leclerc who laid claim to provisional pole. The Ferrari driver posted a lap of 1:10.418 to set the pace 0.026s ahead of Piastri. Sainz initially slotted into third place, over two tenths off his team-mate but Max, last across the line, posted a lap of 1:10.567 to bump the Spanish driver out to fourth as the opening runs came to an end.
In the final runs, Leclerc tightened his grip on top spot, lowering the benchmark to 1:10.270 to take his first pole position since last season in Las Vegas. Piastri also improved, though only enough to take P2 - 0.154s behind Leclerc. And when Sainz climbed to P3 with a lap of 1:10.518 it was left to Max, the last of the pole contenders to try to topple the local hero.
However, with a rare error, Max’s attempt came undone almost as soon as it started. Kicking off his final flyer, Max powered into Saint-Devote but when his RB20 stepped out, he had to react quickly and though he tried to correct the slide, he clipped the barrier on exit. The lap was gone and as Norris and Russell also improved Max qualified sixth, ahead of Hamilton, Tsunoda, Williams’ Alex Albon and the Alpine of 10th-placed Pierre Gasly.
Max Cutting It Just Fine© Getty Images
| Rank | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | | 1 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:10.270 | - |
| 2 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:10.424 | +0.154 |
| 3 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 1:10.518 | +0.248 |
| 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:10.542 | +0.272 |
| 5 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:10.543 | +0.273 |
| 6 | Max Verstappen | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1:10.567 | +0.297 |
| 7 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:10.621 | +0.351 |
| 8 | Yuki Tsunoda | Visa Cash App RB | 1:10.858 | +0.588 |
| 9 | Alex Albon | Williams | 1:10.948 | +0.678 |
| 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:11.311 | +1.041 |
| ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |
| 18 | Sergio Pérez | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1:12.060 | +0.568 (in Q1) |
