Provisional starting grid GP Monaco | Grid penalty for Leclerc, Verstappen on pole

Fernando Alonso and Charles Leclerc put the heat on Max Verstappen, yet it was the Dutchman who managed to secure pole position for the Monaco Grand Prix. Alonso starts next to him on the front row, but behind him the starting order has changed due to Leclerc's grid penalty.

Leclerc lost his third starting spot after the stewards penalised him for an incident during qualifying in which he obstructed Lando Norris. The stewards placed most of the blame on the Ferrari team, which should have warned Leclerc about Norris' approaching McLaren. Nevertheless, it is the driver who is at fault according to the rules.

As a result, the Monegasque falls back to sixth, pushing Esteban Ocon, Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton up a place. Lance Stroll also had to report to the stewards for missing his weigh-in, but he is allowed to keep his 14th starting spot as Aston Martin took him back to the weighbridge without having worked on the car.

Leading the way was Sergio Perez, who put his Red Bull Racing car into the wall as early as Q1, dropping to the last starting spot. Helmut Marko was unapologetic about the Mexican's crash, calling it "a stupid mistake".