Lando Norris stunned the streets of Monte Carlo on Saturday by snatching pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix in a dramatic end to a fiercely contested qualifying session. The McLaren driver delivered a blistering final lap of 1:09.954, just enough to edge out local hero Charles Leclerc and team-mate Oscar Piastri in a tense Q3 showdown.
As strategies diverged in the closing minutes, McLaren made the bold call to run both drivers for two flying laps on fresh soft tyres — a move that paid off handsomely. Norris, showing both composure and confidence, unseated Leclerc from the top spot in the dying seconds, denying the Monegasque driver a fairy-tale pole at his home circuit.
Piastri slotted into third with another strong showing for the Woking-based team, while Leclerc’s Ferrari stablemate Lewis Hamilton bounced back impressively from a crash in final practice to secure fourth. Max Verstappen, meanwhile, endured a frustrating afternoon and could only muster fifth in his Red Bull, struggling to find rhythm on the tight and unforgiving street circuit.
One of the surprise performances of the day came from Isack Hadjar, who powered his Racing Bulls car to sixth, turning heads with a confident and aggressive run. Fernando Alonso followed in seventh for Aston Martin, with Esteban Ocon in the Haas taking eighth. Liam Lawson put in a solid effort to place ninth, while Williams’ Alex Albon rounded out the top ten.
Carlos Sainz, unable to match Leclerc’s pace, was left disappointed in 11th after complaining of a lack of grip on his final Q2 run. Yuki Tsunoda, still wrestling with Red Bull’s setup, will start from 12th after another frustrating session.
Nico Hulkenberg squeezed his Kick Sauber into Q2 and capitalised on problems for the Mercedes duo to qualify 13th. George Russell suffered a power unit issue and coasted to a halt in the tunnel, ending his session prematurely and leaving him 14th. Rookie Kimi Antonelli’s Monaco debut ended with a crash at the Nouvelle Chicane in Q1, relegating him to 15th.
Just missing out on a Q2 slot was Gabriel Bortoleto in the second Kick Sauber, while Haas’s Ollie Bearman, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll, and the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto were all knocked out in Q1.
Bearman’s woes were compounded by a 10-place grid penalty for a red flag infringement in Friday’s practice, which will see him start from the back of the grid. Stroll, too, takes a one-place penalty for an FP1 incident with Leclerc, dropping him further down the order.
With Norris on pole and Leclerc desperate to finally win on home turf, Sunday’s race promises to deliver the kind of high-stakes drama Monaco is known for — tight margins, tight walls, and no room for error.
