Hamilton fastest as Ferrari underline favourites status in Monaco practice

Lewis Hamilton was fastest from Charles Leclerc as Ferrari underlined their status as favourites for victory at the Monaco Grand Prix.

Hamilton beat Leclerc by 0.111s with Red Bull's Max Verstappen only 0.168s off the pace but Ferrari had a perfect Friday, having also had a one-two in first practice.

The unique nature of the Monaco circuit, which features several slow and medium speed corners, suit the characteristics of Ferrari's car which means Hamilton and Leclerc have a big opportunity to earn the team's first Grand Prix victory since October 2024.

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Mercedes have won all five races so far this season but George Russell, who is 43 points behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli, was 0.379s adrift of Hamilton.

Antonelli was half a second behind, so it could be a fight for Mercedes to get onto the podium if they are unable to qualify towards the front, given overtaking will be challenging in Sunday's race.

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Lando Norris suffered a potential battery problem, the same issue that led to Russell's retirement at the Canadian Grand Prix, and lost 45 minutes of crucial track time.

His team-mate Oscar Piastri did not look too competitive, either, in seventh, behind Isack Hadjar who crashed early in first practice.

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Audi also look quick in Monaco with Nico Hulkenberg in eighth and Gabriel Bortoleto in ninth, so will be aiming to score points for the first time since the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Cadillac's Sergio Perez caused the only red flag of the session when his brakes caught fire with five minutes remaining.

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Can Ferrari convert pace into perfect result?

Even though the cars are narrower this year, qualifying will largely dictate the result of Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix and everything points to a Ferrari front row lockout.

The big question is whether it will be Hamilton or Leclerc on pole position. Leclerc had the upper hand for most of the day but Hamilton and his side of the garage made several setup changes that paid off and he looked at one with the car.

Ferrari's main weakness in 2026 has been on the straights, but Monaco is the least power sensitive circuit on the calendar.

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Sky Sports F1's Bernie Collins said: "From our understanding, Ferrari have a small turbo. That's the first bit that starts to spin as you exit the corners.

"The small turbo spins up quicker and they get up to speed quicker. That's why their starts are good. In slow-speed corners, you go through a lot of that initial acceleration. That's Ferrari's strength."

Verstappen was Ferrari's closest challenger throughout the day as he was third in both sessions, making the most of Red Bull's short wheelbase car.

McLaren and Mercedes brought some unusual aerodynamic parts to Monaco to add downforce to their rear wings, but it has not translated into enough performance to beat Ferrari.

Monaco GP Practice Two Timesheet

Driver

Team

Time

1) Lewis Hamilton

Ferrari

1:13.026

2) Charles Leclerc

Ferrari

+0.111

3) Max Verstappen

Red Bull

+0.168

4) George Russell

Mercedes

+0.379

5) Kimi Antonelli

Mercedes

+0.503

6) Isack Hadjar

Red Bull

+1.061

7) Oscar Piastri

McLaren

+1.062

8) Nico Hulkenberg

Audi

+1.068

9) Gabriel Bortoleto

Audi

+1.333

10) Oliver Bearman

Haas

+1.430

11) Pierre Gasly

Alpine

+1.471

12) Carlos Sainz

Williams

+1.486

13) Alex Albon

Williams

+1.574

14) Arvid Lindblad

Racing Bulls

+1.722

15) Franco Colapinto

Alpine

+1.732

16) Liam Lawson

Racing Bulls

+1.759

17) Esteban Ocon

Haas

+1.819

18) Sergio Perez

Cadillac

+2.090

19) Lando Norris

McLaren

+2.248

20) Fernando Alonso

Aston Martin

+2.268

21) Valtteri Bottas

Cadillac

+2.733

22) Lance Stroll

Aston Martin

+3.148

Sky Sports F1's Monaco GP live schedule

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Saturday June 6

9.40am: F3 Sprint

11.15am: Monaco GP Practice Three (session starts at 11.30am)

1.10pm: F2 Sprint

2.15pm: Monaco GP Qualifying build-up

3pm: MONACO GP QUALIFYING*

Sunday June 7

6.50am: F3 Feature Race

8.30am: F2 Feature Race

10.50am: Porsche Supercup

12.30pm: Monaco GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday*

2pm: THE MONACO GRAND PRIX*

4pm: Monaco GP reaction: Chequered Flag*

*Also on Sky Sports Main Event

Watch the Monaco Grand Prix, the first of six races in eight weeks, live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime