Ferrari took the front row of the grid in Monaco with Carlos Sainz in second, while Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen qualified third and fourth
Leclerc went out first to set the pace on his first hot run in Q3, pushing hard with the times having improved throughout the session as the track rubbered-in. He went quickest with a time of 1min 11.376sec – Leclerc was completely hooked up, flying over the lap using every inch of track. It was magnificent, a full two-tenths clear of his teammate Sainz.
This is the pole the Monegasque driver wanted, especially after the bitter disappointment he suffered last year. Then he was unable to start from the pole he had claimed, after a crash on his final lap in qualifying inflicted damage to the driveshaft that was only discovered on his way to the grid on Sunday.The pole is likely to be absolutely vital with drivers emphasising that this year, more than ever, grid position is everything here.
It represents a real chance for Leclerc to wrestle back the championship lead after the last round in Spain where he had to retire, and Verstappen took a six-point advantage over his rival. An extraordinary turnaround given that Leclerc was 46 points ahead after the third round in Australia.Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhones or the Google Play store on Android phones by searching for 'The Guardian'.