Kimi Antonelli set the fastest time in FP3 in Monaco ahead of the two Ferraris. The championship leader sends a strong message before a qualifying session that promises to be explosive.
Read more Max Verstappen sets the goal for Red Bull facing Ferrari’s dominance in Monaco
The final free practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix offered a first glimpse of what could be the afternoon’s battle for pole position. While Ferrari seemed to have the upper hand since the start of the weekend, Kimi Antonelli came to upset the hierarchy by placing his Mercedes at the top of the timesheets.
Under generous sunshine and ideal conditions, the drivers didn’t wait long to hit the track. In Monaco, every lap counts to build confidence as close to the rails as possible, and teams quickly launched their preparation programs.
Ferrari starts strong, Antonelli responds
The Ferraris quickly confirmed their good form seen on Friday. Lewis Hamilton initially took the lead with a time of 1’14″390 before being successively overtaken by several competitors.
Charles Leclerc, particularly awaited by his home crowd, then set a reference time of 1’13″748, suggesting that the Scuderia would once again dominate the session.
But Kimi Antonelli immediately responded. The young Italian first took the lead with 1’13″374 before progressively improving his benchmarks. After twenty minutes of running, as Leclerc returned to the top with 1’13″355, the Mercedes driver replied with an impressive 1’13″137.
A demonstration of speed that confirmed Mercedes’ excellent progress since the start of the weekend.
Cadillac still facing problems
While the favorites were battling for the top positions, Cadillac had another complicated session. Valtteri Bottas reported a burning smell coming from his brakes, a problem already seen on Sergio Pérez’s car on Friday.
Read more Lance Stroll reveals an “amazing” problem at Aston Martin in Monaco
The Mexican also experienced a similar alert a few minutes later, mentioning a fire starting on his front left brake. These issues could become concerning for the American team as qualifying approaches.
The session was also marked by an accident involving Oliver Bearman. About twenty minutes from the end, the Haas driver lost control of his car at the entrance to Massenet after being surprised by a bump.
His car ended its race in the safety barriers, seriously damaging the rear wing and part of the rear suspension. The incident resulted in a red flag and interrupted the final preparation runs.
After several minutes of neutralization, the session resumed for a four-minute final sprint.
Antonelli sends a warning before pole
Before the interruption, Antonelli had already made a big impact with a time of 1’12″720, the absolute best time of the weekend so far. Behind him, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton could not do better than a three-tenth deficit.
The restart did not allow the main contenders to improve their performances, thus leaving the Mercedes driver to finish at the top of this ultimate dress rehearsal.
A few hours before qualifying, Antonelli now appears as a serious candidate for pole position, in a battle that promises to pit Mercedes against Ferrari for the conquest of the most precious spot of the Monaco weekend.
Read more Lewis Hamilton calms the euphoria despite Ferrari’s one-two: «There’s still work to be done»
FP3 Classification of the Monaco F1 GP 2026:
