Daniel Ricciardo sweeps to pole position as Verstappen crashes out - Hamilton suffers a setback but recovers to third
Published by Christine
Qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix was drama from start to finish, with Felipe Nasr’s engine giving up just a minute or two into the first session. There was a red flag period whilst the Sauber was recovered, only for another red flag to appear when Max Verstappen hit a couple of barriers and ended with a heavy impact into the wall. He emerged unscathed, if embarrassed. Kevin Magnussen got into Q2 but was caught out with a stewards investigation after exiting the pit lane when the red light was showing.
The second session was slightly calmer, although both Williams drivers dropped out in Q2, and Fernando Alonso made his way into the top ten whilst Jenson Button could not join him.
In the final session, Lewis Hamilton came to a halt at the end of the pit lane, and had to be pulled back by the mechanics, who patched him up in time to set one fast lap. Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo had set a staggeringly fast lap time, Hamilton was on a flier but had to settle for third, as Rosberg secured second and Ricciardo retained P1 – his first pole position in Formula One.
