Hamilton hoped Alonso would take pole instead of Verstappen

Lewis Hamilton hoped Fernando Alonso would take pole for the Monaco Grand Prix. The Briton made this known after qualifying, although like everyone else he saw that it was Max Verstappen who ran away with pole.

Qualifying for the Monaco GP is normally the most important session of the F1 season, and the 2023 edition was no different. It was extremely exciting in the final phase of Q3, in which, for a while, it looked like the old fox Alonso would take pole. Hamilton would have granted that to his former teammate and rival.

Hamilton 'hopeful' for Alonso pole

''I was really hopeful Fernando [Alonso] would have pole at the end. I saw it, and I was like, ‘Oh, this could be amazing for him’. But that Red Bull was just too quick,'' Hamilton told Crash.net. Hamilton himself had to make do with sixth place in qualifying, which becomes fifth on the grid after Charles Leclerc's grid penalty. There wasn't much more in it for Hamilton.

''I'll take anything I can get. When you think about it, we are having to rely on others currently. So when you have Checo (Sergio Perez) in the wall, it’s like ‘Thank you!'" In addition, Hamilton has high praise for what he sees as the phenomenal job Aston Martin did in keeping up with Red Bull in qualifying. ''I’m really happy for Aston, and I hope that we can be there soon."