- Ferrari set the pace in both Friday practice sessions at the Monaco GP.
- Red Bull and Mercedes remain close enough to threaten in qualifying.
- McLaren need FP3 to recover lost rhythm before the decisive session.
Monaco qualifying is never just another Saturday session.
On most Formula 1 weekends, pole position is useful. In Monte Carlo it is, or can be, decisive.
That is why Friday’s practice running mattered more than usual. Not because FP1 and FP2 guarantee anything, but because Monaco has a habit of revealing which cars give their drivers the confidence to attack walls, ride kerbs and build lap time without hesitation.
On that evidence, Ferrari look like the team to beat.
Charles Leclerc set the pace in FP1 before Lewis Hamilton led a Ferrari one-two in FP2, giving the Scuderia the cleanest Friday of any frontrunning team. At a circuit built around low-speed grip, braking confidence and traction rather than outright efficiency, Ferrari appear to have found a workable window quickly.
That matters.
Monaco does not give teams much time to solve problems. If a driver spends Friday fighting the car, Saturday can become a damage-limitation exercise before qualifying has even started.
Ferrari have the advantage, but not comfort
The temptation is to call Ferrari favourites and move on.
That would be too simple.
Max Verstappen was third in FP2 and close enough to ensure Red Bull remain a real threat. The Monaco GP has often rewarded drivers who can find something extra when the barriers close in, and Verstappen remains one of the best at doing exactly that.
Mercedes also cannot be dismissed. George Russell and Kimi Antonelli both showed enough pace to suggest the team are still in the fight, even if Ferrari looked stronger once the soft tyres came out.
The bigger concern sits with McLaren.
Oscar Piastri kept the car in the top 10, but Lando Norris lost valuable FP2 mileage. Around Monaco, that is not a small issue. Every lap helps a driver build rhythm, understand traffic and judge how much more can be taken from the car.
FP3 now becomes crucial for McLaren.
FP3 can still change the story
The beauty of Monaco is that Friday rarely gives the full answer.
Track evolution is significant, traffic can distort the timesheets, and one red flag at the wrong moment can completely change a driver’s qualifying preparation.
That gives this preview a natural place to develop once FP3 is complete.
If Ferrari remain on top, the story becomes whether Hamilton or Leclerc can convert the team’s pace into pole. If Verstappen or Mercedes close the gap, qualifying turns into a genuine four-way fight. If McLaren find something overnight, Friday’s problems may quickly be forgotten.
For now, though, Ferrari have done what every team wants to do before Monaco qualifying.
They have put pressure on everyone else.
The question is whether that pressure holds when the most important hour of the weekend begins.
