Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat went out in Q2 in front of the Renault of Nico Hülkenberg, Kevin Magnussen’s Haas and Massa’s Williams.Įsteban Ocon crashed his Force India at the swimming pool in first practice but his team were able to repair it in time for qualifying and he finished in 16th, out in Q1 in front of Jolyon Palmer in the Renault, Lance Stroll’s Williams and the two Saubers of Pascal Wehrlein and Marcus Ericsson.Following a long summer break, the Formula One World Championships is all set to make a return with the 14th round of the Formseason. Stoffel Vandoorne finished in 10th in the second McLaren after crashing at the swimming pool causing the yellow flags that ended Q2, but has a three-place penalty after hitting Felipe Massa in Spain and will start from 12th. However Jenson Button, sitting in for Fernando Alonso, who qualified in ninth will start from the back of the grid after taking power unit component changes, which as things stand means Hamilton will start from 13th on the grid.Ĭarlos Sainz Jr put in another superb performance to claim seventh ahead of Sergio Pérez in the Force India and the Haas of Romain Grosjean. The two Red Bulls of Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo were in fourth and fifth respectively, while McLaren managed to put two cars into Q3 for the first time this season. They did so again here but Bottas was able to almost match them while Hamilton could not, a pattern he simply cannot allow to continue if he is to stay in the fight for the title. Mercedes have struggled all season to find the narrow operating window for their tyres, while Ferrari have proved repeatedly they are able to dial in to a track quickly and bring the rubber up to pace with ease. His second attempt was no better again lacking rear grip he ultimately had to abort his final lap under the yellow flags. It was clear again in Q2 as he pulled off a big save holding the rear going into Casino Square – it cost him his first shot at a quick time. In contrast, Hamilton’s struggle to find grip and balance was evident from the off, he was six-tenths back from Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and 10th in the opening session. Raikkonen had his ride just to his liking and his final quick lap was masterful, within a whisker of the walls, the middle sector in particular was strong and Vettel had no answer. The other car was able to get it to work but I can’t see why we weren’t able to and it feels like a mystery because none of us currently understand it and it’s difficult.” It is a very strange thing, a case of them going in and out throughout the lap. Hamilton said: “We had a similar scenario in Sochi, particularly on my side so I hope we can discover the issue moving forward. “It seems to be a bit of a diva to get it into the right window,” he said of their car. The Mercedes executive director, Toto Wolff, admitted that the team was still adapting to this season’s Pirelli rubber. In Russia Hamilton had similarly struggled while the Finn in the same machinery took pole and the win. Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas also had difficulty with his tyres, although his third on the grid was only two-thousandths down on Vettel. Of greater weight, however, are the enduring implications in what is expected to be a season-long battle. Vettel has the advantage by six points and will expect to extend that significantly on Sunday afternoon. It is a major blow in his championship fight with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, who took second on the grid, the first time the Scuderia has locked out the front row in Monte Carlo since Jody Scheckter took pole alongside Gilles Villeneuve here in 1979. “I will try to get into the top 10 but it will be a nice Sunday drive I imagine.” “That’s pretty much the weekend done,” he added.
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