The telemetry analysis from Monaco qualifying highlights the untapped potential of the Ferrari SF-26, ultimately betrayed by a tiny but costly steering correction from Charles Leclerc. In the direct comparison, Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes made the difference through superior tyre preparation, while Lewis Hamilton excelled in the slowest sections of the circuit. It was a battle decided by thousandths of a second, where aerodynamic details and an aggressive interpretation of Monaco’s kerbs proved decisive.
Ferrari, Charles Leclerc’s crash and the untapped potential
Unfortunately, it is impossible to analyse the telemetry from Charles Leclerc’s final-lap incident directly. As a result, the evaluation must be based on live timing data and the micro-sector splits available from qualifying.
Those figures reveal a second sector filled with purple timing segments, indicating that Charles Leclerc was running approximately one tenth of a second faster than Kimi Antonelli’s benchmark time. The Monegasque driver had also completed an excellent first sector before the accident.
Furthermore, if we consider that Lewis Hamilton managed a 33.95-second second sector, it is highly likely that Charles Leclerc would have dipped below the 33.9-second mark. Unfortunately, he pushed beyond the limit at the decisive moment.
Looking at the onboard footage, it appears that Charles Leclerc made a slight judgement error. He turned into the corner marginally too early and was forced into a small corrective steering input to the right. At the speeds involved in that section of the circuit, even such a tiny correction can destabilise the entire car. Adding to the difficulty was the presence of cars ahead, which, as Charles Leclerc himself later confirmed, reduced the aerodynamic downforce available to his Ferrari.
The combination of that small correction and the compromised aerodynamic conditions proved too much. The rear of the Ferrari SF-26 stepped out unexpectedly, causing Charles Leclerc to lose control and ultimately ending his hopes of securing pole position.
Monaco GP telemetry comparison: Kimi Antonelli vs Lewis Hamilton
Examining the direct comparison between Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton reveals two or three crucial factors that shaped the fight for pole position.
In the first sector, Kimi Antonelli gained a clear two tenths of a second over Lewis Hamilton. He built this advantage exiting Turn 1 and throughout the uphill section that follows, gaining roughly one tenth in that phase alone.
The Mercedes W17 demonstrated superior traction, likely helped by excellent electrical energy deployment as well. Overall, Kimi Antonelli gained approximately 40 thousandths through Turn 1 and another 70 thousandths on the climb towards Casino Square. The Italian driver then made an additional gain between Turns 3 and 4, in the Casino section at the end of Sector 1, where he found roughly another tenth and a half.
This is a clear indication of the quality of the Mercedes chassis. The W17 displayed outstanding grip and downforce in that part of the circuit, supported by near-perfect tyre preparation.
Mercedes’ superiority in tyre warm-up throughout the Monaco weekend was impossible to ignore. Even during practice sessions, the German team was capable of executing push-cool-push-cool sequences, whereas Ferrari often required longer preparation cycles such as push-cool-cool-cool or occasionally encountered mistakes because the tyres struggled to reach the optimal operating window.
For Mercedes, the process of bringing the tyres into the correct temperature range appeared significantly more natural and consistent.
The strengths of the Ferrari SF-26
On the other hand, Ferrari once again confirmed its strength in the slowest sections of the circuit. This becomes particularly evident when analysing the data from the Hairpin all the way to the tunnel exit.
Across that portion of the lap, Lewis Hamilton managed to gain an impressive one tenth and seven tenths over Kimi Antonelli. In fact, the seven-time world champion recorded the fastest second sector of the entire qualifying session.
It was a remarkable demonstration of Ferrari’s form in Monaco, although one that ultimately went unrewarded.
Kimi Antonelli responded by recovering one tenth and three tenths through the harbour chicane, attacking it in spectacular fashion. As highlighted by our analysis yesterday, the Bologna-born driver climbed aggressively over the inside kerb before effectively landing with the car almost straight, allowing him to return to the throttle and accelerate much earlier than his rivals.
Across the remainder of the circuit, the two cars were closely matched. Through the Swimming Pool section, the performance levels were extremely similar, with the Ferrari perhaps even holding a slight advantage.
Likewise, no major differences emerged at Rascasse. Although Kimi Antonelli completed an excellent final sector, the decisive gaps were built almost entirely across the first and second sectors of the lap.
Ultimately, Monaco qualifying was decided by the smallest of margins. Ferrari demonstrated genuine pole-position pace, Lewis Hamilton was exceptional in the slow-speed sections, and Charles Leclerc appeared capable of challenging for the top spot before his accident. In the end, however, the combination of Mercedes’ superior tyre preparation, Kimi Antonelli’s outstanding commitment through the harbour chicane, and a tiny but fatal mistake from Charles Leclerc proved enough to swing pole position away from Ferrari by mere thousandths of a second.
A painful outcome for the Scuderia, particularly because the data suggests that the SF-26 possessed all the ingredients required to start from the very front of the grid.
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