Piastri rides the walls to P3 in Monaco after “messy” Qualifying

After “struggling with confidence” around the challenging Monte Carlo streets, Oscar Piastri was off the mark in Qualifying, ending the most critical session of the season in a “decent” third place as his teammate secured pole position.

Oscar Piastri was one of three drivers — alongside teammate Lando Norris and rival Max Verstappen — to stay put during the early pitlane scramble, opting to wait out the opening chaos before heading out four minutes into Q1.

Once released, the Australian made an immediate impact as he jumped to the top of the timesheets with a 1:12.439s. 

That benchmark was soon outpaced by the Ferrari pair, but Piastri responded with a commanding lap more than a second quicker to reclaim the top spot — though not without risk, when he clipped the barrier and radioed, “I’ve hit the wall”.

“I think I’ve hit more walls this weekend than I have in my whole career, so it’s been untidy,” Piastri said. 

“But yeah, just been struggling to get into the groove a bit.”

.A late Red Flag disrupted the closing minutes of Q1, but Piastri had already completed his final effort, allowing the championship leader to safely progress in P2.

During Q2, the second Red Flag of the session suspended running before Piastri had managed a competitive time, turning the shortened session into a race against the clock. 

Switching to the softest compound available, he delivered the fourth-fastest lap on return, trailing Norris but remaining well within the cut for Q3.

On his final attempt, two strong opening sectors had him on pace to improve before a brush with the wall at Rascasse forced him to back off in the final sector. 

Despite his minor error, the Australian secured a spot in the top ten shootout to continue his streak of Q3 appearances in 2025.

“It’s been a pretty challenging time until Q3, to be honest,” the McLaren driver said.

“But I feel like we got the car in a much better window for qualifying and I was much happier. 

“But it’s just been a very messy weekend. 

“I said before, I think I’ve hit more things this weekend than I have in my whole career. 

“So, it’s not been that straightforward, but I think to come out with this result is quite positive. 

“The laps I did at the end of qualifying felt pretty good. 

“Obviously not quite enough, but yeah. 

“I think at a track like this when you’ve had a messy build-up, you’re always going to leave a little bit on the table.”

When it came down to the all-important pole shootout, Piastri joined the queue early, eager to capitalise on track position. 

He cemented an initial time of 1:10.531s to briefly hold second place, having set the fastest first sector before returning to the pits.

McLaren then opted to send both drivers out early for their final runs, aiming for two shots at pole while others settled for one. 

On his first flyer, Piastri looked set to challenge for the front row after going purple in Sector 2, but he ultimately missed provisional pole by just 0.015s.

His final attempt began with even more promise, but a scruffy second half of the lap saw him fall away, leaving him third on the grid for Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix — narrowly behind Norris and Leclerc.

“Just struggling with the balance really,” Piastri said. 

“Struggling with confidence in the car, I think. 

“It’s in a much better place now than it was yesterday for sure, so I don’t think that was necessarily the problem at this point. 

“But yeah, I’ve just been struggling to repeat the feeling I had last year through practice really. 

“But I think the team did a good job of trying to put the car in a better window, and I think we definitely did that by qualifying. 

“But, yeah, definitely some laps I would rather have done again through the weekend.”

Meanwhile, Norris stole the headlines with a blistering lap that not only secured Pole but also broke the Monaco lap record, denying hometown favourite Charles Leclerc and claiming the most coveted grid slot of the year.

Starting from third, victory around the streets of Monaco will be a tough ask for the Australian, however, the introduction of a mandatory two-stop race has added an extra strategic element to Piastri’s campaign that could play into his favour this evening.

“I don’t think anyone really knows what to expect!” the Australian admitted.

Lights out for the Monaco Grand Prix will take place at 23:00 AEST.

Image: Formula 1

2025 Monaco Grand Prix Schedule (AEST):

Friday, May 23:

FP1: 21:30 – 22:30

Saturday, May 24:

FP2: 01:00 – 02:00

FP3: 20:30 – 21:30

Sunday, May 25:

Quali: 00:00 – 01:00

Race: 23:00

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