Charles Leclerc has confessed his disappointment losing out on pole position at the Monaco GP.
Coming into qualifying, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari looked to be the combination to beat at the Monaco GP.
The Monegasque looked serene and comfortable at his home circuit, finishing the first two practice sessions fastest.
But McLaren and Red Bull applied pressure on Saturday, and Leclerc would have a tough ask to secure pole position.
In the final run of Q3, he took the coveted top spot for a brief few minutes. However,Lando Norris set a new lap record, snatching P1 away in the dying seconds.An audibly frustrated Leclerc shouted loudly on the radio, and will line up P2.
Speaking after qualifying, Leclerc, when asked, confirmed he had no more pace left to give in Q3.
“There is always something more to be done,” he reflected.” At the end of the day, this was the best we could do. I think the lap was really good.
“The first lap was a bit of a shame because that gives you a bit more confidence for the second run when you have a good first lap. I couldn’t have that, I had Sector 2 traffic, but it’s the way it is.
Frustration for Charles Leclerc during Monaco GP qualifying
Leclerc admitted his frustration at securing the second spot on the front row. The Monegasque highlighted the immense challenge of overtaking on the narrow streets of Monte-Carlo.
“I’m just obviously very frustrated. We know that we don’t quite have the car to go for wins this year, but this weekend the car felt good. Starting second here… it’s going to be tricky to take that first place.”
Leclerc’s one-lap pace during practice and qualifying saw him frequently jump to the top of the timesheets. Asked why his SF-25 had such strong performance over a single lap, he gave an honest assessment.
“I don’t know, ” he said.”I like city tracks in general. I like to really go all into Qualifying and take maximum risks. I think this pays off most of the time. Sometimes it doesn’t pay off.
“But I’m proud anyway of the result we’ve had today. On paper, it was going to be a very difficult weekend for us. At the end of the day, it’s not that bad.”
Team-mate Lewis Hamilton initially finished in fourth, putting in a strong showing for Ferrari. However, he was awarded a three-place grid penalty for impeding Max Verstappen in Q1.
