Kimi Antonelli Dominates Monaco Final Practice with Jaw-Dropping Pace

Kimi Antonelli sets the benchmark in final practice for the Monaco Grand Prix, firing in a 1m12.720s to lead the field ahead of qualifying in Monte Carlo.

The 19-year-old eclipses Ferrari’s Friday control, heading Charles Leclerc by over three tenths. Lewis Hamilton places third, with George Russell fourth, 0.763 seconds behind his Mercedes teammate.

Max Verstappen completes the top five as teams hone qualifying execution on a circuit where track position usually decides Sunday’s outcome.

Hamilton is first to venture out, but it takes more than 15 minutes before the whole field registers representative laps. Everyone commits to soft tyres, mirroring qualifying trim and maximizing track evolution.

Midway through, Antonelli sets 1m13.137s to top the order. He edges Leclerc by two tenths, with Russell third, 0.346 seconds down. Hamilton sits sixth, over eight tenths off Leclerc’s benchmark.

The session then compresses. Grip improves rapidly, and Antonelli breaks into the 1m12s. Leclerc gets closest, but remains above that barrier, as do Hamilton and Verstappen.

A red flag halts running with 15 minutes left after Oliver Bearman crashes at Turn 3. The car is cleared quickly, but barrier and track checks delay the restart.

Green flag returns with five minutes remaining, creating a 10-minute interruption that kills momentum. Antonelli stays in the garage, while others push without finding improvements.

Behind the top five, Oscar Piastri, Gabriel Bortoleto, Isack Hadjar, Lando Norris, and Nico Hülkenberg complete the top 10. The spread underscores Monaco’s punishing margins.

Cadillac faces a potential reliability subplot. Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez both report smoke from front brakes, hinting at cooling or materials sensitivities under low-speed, high-energy demands.

Mercedes’s one-lap execution looks sharp, building on Antonelli’s confidence from his Monaco racing overview. The team balances peak grip with track position priorities.

Ferrari still appears a significant threat. Leclerc’s rhythm aligns with expectations set in the Ferrari Monaco GP update, and qualifying remains their strongest lever at this venue.

Context from Friday’s baseline, including Practice 1, shows Ferrari and Mercedes trading small edges as grip builds. The red flag masks some late-session potential.

Leclerc’s form versus Ferrari expectations remains pivotal, as explored in Leclerc and Ferrari at Monaco. Antonelli’s FP3 surge now reframes the qualifying narrative.

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Daniel Miller

Daniel Miller reports on Formula 1 Grand Prix weekends with race-day analysis, team-radio highlights, and point-standings updates. He explains power-unit upgrades, aerodynamic developments, and driver rivalries in straightforward, SEO-friendly language for a global F1 audience.