2024 Monaco GP FP3: Leclerc Ahead of Verstappen and Hamilton

Charles Leclerc maintained his and Ferrari’s dominance at the top of the timesheets during Saturday’s final practice session for the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix, leading ahead of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton.

After two practice sessions on Friday to reacquaint themselves with the tight, twisty streets of Monte Carlo, FP3 offered drivers their last opportunity to push the limits and fine-tune their cars ahead of the crucial qualifying hour in the afternoon.

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As the session began, much attention was on Verstappen and Red Bull following their “worst possible” start to the weekend and Verstappen’s assertion that there was “no solution” in sight due to severe bouncing and balance issues.

Predictably, many drivers were quick to hit the track to accumulate more laps, with weather conditions shifting from warm but overcast to hot and mostly clear, showcasing the harbour and the rest of the Principality in the bright sunshine.

About a quarter of the way into the session, Valtteri Bottas in the Kick Sauber was the first to exceed the limit, tapping the wall exiting Piscine, sustaining front-right suspension damage, and bringing out the red flags when he failed to navigate La Rascasse.

Upon arriving at the scene of his former teammate’s incident, Hamilton had to take evasive action. Following the brief stoppage, the seven-time world champion experienced another moment with a heavy lock-up at Sainte Devote, leading to a trip into the run-off area.

The practice session drama didn’t end there. Drivers jostled for track position to complete representative laps, resulting in gesticulations and angry radio messages from Verstappen, Kevin Magnussen, and Sergio Perez as they manoeuvred around slower cars.

After a series of runs on soft tyres, home favourite Leclerc set the benchmark with an impressive lap of 1m 11.369s, placing him a couple of tenths ahead of Verstappen, who had found some performance gains but noted over the radio how hard he was pushing.

Hamilton finished third, another tenth-and-a-half behind, with Oscar Piastri leading McLaren’s charge in fourth, Sergio Perez fifth in the other Red Bull, and George Russell completing the top six in his Mercedes.

Carlos Sainz secured seventh, still some distance from his pace-setting teammate Leclerc, with Lando Norris in eighth in the second McLaren after a near-collision with Russell exiting the tunnel.

Yuki Tsunoda kept RB inside the top 10 with a strong run to ninth, followed by Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin, Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, Alex Albon’s Williams, and the Haas cars of Nico Hulkenberg and Magnussen.

Lance Stroll, Esteban Ocon, Logan Sargeant, and Daniel Ricciardo followed in the remaining Aston Martin, Alpine, Williams, and RB cars, with Kick Sauber bringing up the rear – Zhou Guanyu in 19th and Bottas 20th, without a time, after his crash.

Monaco GP FP3 Results

2024 Monaco Grand Prix FP3, 25 May 2024