Is the pole sitter really still assured of victory in Monaco?

It is customary to say that the Monaco Grand Prix is ​​largely played on Saturday. On a track where overtaking is almost impossible, qualifying is crucial for Sunday's result. Very often, the author of the pole position finds himself on the highest step of the podium at the end of the Grand Prix. And yet… Monaco sometimes reserves its share of surprises.

Since 2000, in the last 22 races held in the Principality, only 12 times has the Saturday pole sitter managed to convert pole into victory. That's a conversion rate of 55%, which is much lower than the Spanish Grand Prix (77%) for example. If qualifying is of capital importance in Monaco, victory is ultimately not that guaranteed. What can happen to the author of the pole so that he cannot win the race? Focus on the latest examples of polemen who failed to win the Grand Prix.

2022: the imbroglio at Ferrari

One year after the heartbreak of 2021, where Charles Leclerc was unable to start his home Grand Prix despite the pole position, the Monegasque takes his revenge and signs a second consecutive pole position on the Monte-Carlo track. The next day, during the formation lap, a deluge fell on Monaco, forcing the marshals to bring out the red flag and postpone the start of the race.

On the 17th lap, the Grand Prix will experience a first turning point for the driver of the Team. Several drivers at the back of the peloton, already wearing intermediate tires, began to drive faster than the leaders. Red Bull, in ambush behind the two Ferraris, tries it and calls Sergio Pérez to the pits. Ferrari responds a lap later... a lap too late for Charles Leclerc, who emerges behind the Mexican on intermediate tires. 

Five rounds later, Carlos Sainz stops in turn... but to move directly to slick tires. In a total imbroglio, Ferrari asks Charles Leclerc to return to the pits, even though his teammate is also in the pits! The engineer may shout “Stay Out!” » (“Stay on the track!”) on the radio, it is already too late and this provokes hysteria and anger from the pole-sitter, who finally finds himself 4th after the pit stops, far behind the winner of the day, Sergio Perez.

Poleman at home, Charles Leclerc lost the victory due to a strategic error by Ferrari © Photo Xavi Bonilla / DPPI

2021: the accident in qualifying

One of the most recent examples is perhaps also one of the cruelest. The local Charles Leclerc is on the verge of becoming the first Monegasque to achieve pole position at home. Best time in Q2, then best time in Q3 during his first lap, the Ferrari driver holds his first pole position at home in the Principality.

But the weekend which then seemed idyllic will turn into a nightmare. During his last attempt, Leclerc was too greedy at the entrance to the Piscine chicane and hit the rail on the inside. Broken suspension, the Monegasque can no longer turn and crashes into the rail coming out of the corner. Red flag, session interrupted then definitively ended. Despite the accident, Charles Leclerc held his pole position thanks to his first timed time.

Except that... A few minutes before the start of the Grand Prix, during the exit lap, the world collapsed. “ No, no, no, no… the gearbox guys” we hear on his radio. The gearbox, which we thought had been affected by the impact the day before, was not damaged, but the transmission shaft had bent. Forced to return to the pits, Leclerc will not come out again. Ferrari must withdraw car number 16, which will not even start. The space reserved for the poleman will remain empty on the grid and it is Max Verstappen, started in 2nd position, who won in Monaco.

Charles Leclerc, injured during his last fast lap in Q3, was not even able to start the race. © DPPI

2017: the wrong strategy

Kimi Räikkönen had nevertheless done everything to win. The Finn, model teammate for Sebastian Vettel since the German's arrival at the Scuderia in 2015, had decided to pull out all the stops in Monaco. Already the author of pole position and winner in the Principality in 2005, Räikkönen was well on his way to doing it again twelve years later. On Saturday, “Iceman” won an authoritative pole, less than 5 hundredths ahead of Vettel. At the same time, he achieved a new record, that of the greatest longevity between two pole positions: the last one dates back to the 2008 French Grand Prix, almost… 9 years ago!

The next day, the Finn got an excellent start and stayed in the lead, ahead of his teammate. Everything goes well until lap 34. The 2007 world champion stops first to put on harder tires while Vettel stays on the track. The German put together the fastest laps before returning to the pits on the 39th lap. After a very good stop, Sebastian Vettel came out on the track in the lead, just ahead of pole-sitter Räikkönen!

If Ferrari holds its double and its first victory in Monaco since 2001, the two Scuderia drivers experienced opposite destinies during the Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel, already in the middle of a duel with Hamilton for the championship, wins in front of Kimi Räikkönen who is even colder than usual. The Finn will have to wait until the 2018 United States Grand Prix to win again.

Vettel all smiles, Räikkönen resigned: the strategy did not work in favor of the Finn © Marc de Mattia / DPPI

2016: pit stop disaster

The 2016 Monaco Grand Prix is ​​perhaps the most memorable Monaco race of the last decade in terms of dramaturgy. ask to Daniel Ricciardo what he thinks about it. The Australian, who was the face of Red Bull at the time, seemed destined for victory in the Principality. Author of an incredible pole position on Saturday, ahead of the untouchables Mercedes, Ricciardo already saw himself as a future winner of the legendary Monegasque event.

On Sunday, Grand Prix day, the weather is unpredictable. Heavy rain falls on Monte-Carlo, the conditions are dire. Several drivers make mistakes, notably Jolyon Palmer on his Renault, victim of a big crash in Sainte-Dévote. However, nothing disturbs Ricciardo, still leader despite the elements. The sun resurfaces and the track begins to dry out halfway through the race. Hamilton stops first to try to surprise the leader by putting on slick tires.

And on the 32nd lap, tragedy struck for Ricciardo... The pole sitter went to the pits, but his team was not ready to welcome him! The dry tires are not ready, but the Red Bull driver is there. Daniel Ricciardo gets annoyed, revs the engine, and leaves after a 13-second stop! Hamilton takes advantage of this and passes right in front of him again. Incredible scenario when everything seemed to succeed at “Honey Badger”.

Despite several attempts to overtake Hamilton, the Red Bull driver was unable to regain his lead, due to a still wet track off the line. The Briton wins and the Australian, for the first time, loses his characteristic smile. Daniel Ricciardo will make up for it two years later, in 2018, with his only victory in the Principality.

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Daniel Ricciardo's catastrophic pit stop during the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix © Frederic Le Floc'h / DPPI

2015: the miscalculation

Before his success in 2016, it must be said that Lewis Hamilton had also had his share of misfortune. In 2015, the Briton took his first pole position in Monaco, almost 4 tenths ahead of his teammate and best enemy Nico Rosberg. Hamilton dominates the Grand Prix head and shoulders, widening the gap to Rosberg despite brake problems. The reigning world champion is then heading towards great success in the Principality.

But with only a few laps remaining, everything was restarted by the accident of Max Verstappen who collided Romain Grosjean in Sainte-Dévote. The safety car is deployed on the 65th lap. Mercedes and Hamilton decide to bet on putting on the softest tires, believing that the gap with Rosberg is sufficient. Big mistake: the Briton comes out behind Rosberg but also behind Vettel! Mercedes made a mistake in the calculations and the pole-sitter found himself trapped in 3rd position.

Defeated, Hamilton still tried to attack Vettel several times, without success. Rosberg won the Monaco Grand Prix for the third time in a row and Hamilton, disappointed, was satisfied with the third step of the podium. After the end of the test, Toto wolff apologizes to Hamilton and says: “We ruined his race” while Niki Lauda speaks of a “unacceptable error”.

One race, two faces at Mercedes: joy for Rosberg, disappointment for Hamilton © Jean Michel Le Meur / DPPI

2012: the penalty

It should have been the last pole position of his career. For his last Monaco Grand Prix, Michael Schumacher signs a masterful qualification on Saturday. One of the final demonstrations of his immense talent but which will be spoiled by a penalty. 

During the previous Grand Prix, in Spain, the Mercedes driver had a collision with the Williams by Bruno Senna. An accident that the FIA ​​will sanction with a five-place penalty for the German… for the Monaco Grand Prix. Pole sitter Schumacher must then start 6th and leaves his place on pole to Mark Webber.

During the race, “Schumi” was unable to regain the pace shown the day before and remained stuck in the peloton. Finally, 15 laps from the finish, the Mercedes' mechanics betrayed the seven-time world champion. Victim of a problem with the fuel pressure, Schumacher was forced to abandon his last Grand Prix in the Principality. A race that he won 5 times in his career.

Despite the best qualifying time, Schumacher will only start 6th in the Grand Prix, penalized for a collision in Spain © JEAN MICHEL LE MEUR / DPPI

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