Charles Leclerc set the fastest time in Monaco on Friday, but his closest rivals were veterans Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.
Charles Leclerc was the star of the day in free practice for the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix, setting a time around 0.2 seconds faster than anyone else in FP2, but two of the most respected drivers on the grid came back to the top on a circuit where skill and experience are more valued.
What will Friday’s data reveal for Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso?
Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso were second and third respectively in the second practice session at Monte Carlo.
The Mercedes drivers finished a very strong race on Friday, while Fernando Alonso put the dark side of a nightmare weekend at Imola behind him.
Mercedes had its ups and downs. Hamilton’s car looked competitive, but George Russell’s was the opposite. He complained about brake vibrations at the Nouvelle Chicane, turn 11, at the exit of the tunnel. This led to some changes to his car’s set-up.
Aston Martin was also back on track after a head-scratching weekend at Imola.
The team is using the older specification AMR24 front wing but has retained the increased downforce rear wing from Imola and it has felt good so far.
Alonso admitted he still felt a bit uneasy about the rear end of his car, but was happy overall.
What has changed to make this happen? Simply the fact that today is a day to push the limits and that the two most experienced drivers on the grid are already experts in this field.
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And it’s true that both the Mercedes and Aston Martin teams were looking forward to Monaco, as the track plays to the strengths of both cars: their slow-cornering ability, good mechanical grip and a lack of high-speed corners or long straights.
But with Ferrari and Red Bull ahead of them, this will come as no surprise if they squeeze out those last tenths of a second.
As we can see, Ferrari has about a third of time left to make up, while McLaren has a big question mark over it.
Mercedes were closer to their ideal lap times so their improvement on Saturday should be smaller than the other teams, and Alonso also gained a few tenths of a second which should give Aston Martin a good chance to be in a good position in tomorrow’s qualifying.
It’s clear that the calibre of Hamilton and Alonso, who have a combined nine world championships between them, will be crucial in whether or not their car ends up in a position where it doesn’t belong on pure performance alone in tomorrow’s race.
So far the feeling is good and expectations are high, but what we saw today is a clear indication that we shouldn’t be surprised to see both Lewis and Fernando battling with McLaren and Red Bull for a top five spot.
McLaren is hiding its cards but will be in the fight
The question that needs answering is where McLaren really stands after two very strong weekends in Miami and Imola.
The Papaya Team (this time in special Senna livery) did not use the soft tyre so their true potential tomorrow cannot be assessed – FP3 will provide more valuable information ahead of qualifying.
But they are clearly capable of competing on equal terms with Ferrari and Red Bull for pole position, and with Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at the wheel they could close the gap on their rivals.
