Monaco GP: Leclerc slowed down, Verstappen surprised

Today's qualifying session of the 2019 Monaco Grand Prix was held under the motto "always good for surprises". Even if the experts agreed that Mercedes was superior to the other teams, this still had to be proven on the track. Above all, however, it was not clear what the situation was with Ferrari. Vettel had scraped his car in the last free practice session, while Leclerc had raised hopes for the Tifosi with a best time.

Bock at Ferrari
Ferrari has repeatedly emphasized in previous races that Sebastian Vettel is the team's number one and that they are focusing on him. But that must not lead to the talented Charles Leclerc being neglected to such an extent that he and the team are deprived of opportunities. And that's exactly what happened in Q1. Admittedly, the times were very close and Leclerc was thought to be safe, but precisely this assessment was a mistake because in the meantime the other drivers pushed him out of qualifying, whereas Vettel even set the fastest time in Q1. Leclerc ended up in 16th place unnecessarily because he stayed in the pits and was unable to continue the fight. Too bad for Ferrari and the young driver talent! You could see the understandable annoyance on the young Monegasque's face.

Verstappen almost pole
Max Verstappen on Red Bull delivered a nice surprise, leaving the Mercedes behind him in Q2 and raising hopes that he could crack the dominance of the Silver Arrows. For a long time there was hope, but in the end it was unfortunately only enough for third place, which Verstappen didn't really like. He knew that he was very close, and in Monaco it's the pole position that decides.

Fabulous run from Hamilton
Hamilton was not on the cards for pole. His stablemate Bottas dominated throughout qualifying. But anyone who knows Lewis knows that he never gives up, not until the very end. And the Briton promptly set a majestic record time on the last run and deservedly took pole, which obviously made him very happy. He was at peace with himself and the world after qualifying.

Since it is notoriously impossible to overtake in Monaco, a start-finish victory for Hamilton in tomorrow's race is very likely. Only the start of the race could provide surprises here and if sudden rain would force the teams to new strategies and unplanned tire changes. For the sake of the excitement of the race, you have to hope for it.