Charles Leclerc is the man to beat in Monte Carlo as the hometown hero put his Ferrari top of the Monaco GP 2025 Free Practice 3 results, just ahead of Max Verstappen in the Red Bull, with Lando Norris of McLaren third fastest in the third practice session of the F1 weekend in the Principality.
The Ferrari driver set the fastest lap in FP3 with a time of 1:10.953, edging out Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by 0.280 seconds. However, the session was not without incident.
Leclerc’s teammate, Lewis Hamilton, crashed into the barriers at Massenet in the closing moments of FP3, bringing out a red flag and ending the session prematurely. Hamilton attributed the crash to traffic on the circuit, which disrupted his line through the corner.
F1 Monaco GP 2025 FP3 results
Check out the full Monaco GP 2025 Free Practice 3 results from the third and final practice session in Monte Carlo below.
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:10.953 |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | +0.280 |
| 3 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.294 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +0.445 |
| 5 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +0.563 |
| 6 | Alexander Albon | Williams | +0.715 |
| 7 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | +0.861 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | +0.940 |
| 9 | Yuki Tsunoda | Red Bull | +0.999 |
| 10 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | +1.060 |
| 11 | George Russell | Mercedes | +1.113 |
| 12 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +1.148 |
| 13 | Nico Hulkenberg | Sauber | +1.172 |
| 14 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +1.241 |
| 15 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +1.249 |
| 16 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | +1.298 |
| 17 | Isack Hadjar | Racing Bulls | +1.318 |
| 18 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | +1.546 |
| 19 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Sauber | +1.648 |
| 20 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | +1.898 |
Hamilton, who finished fifth fastest overall, lost control of his Ferrari, striking the barrier heavily and triggering a red flag that halted proceedings with just two minutes left on the clock.
This incident now puts Hamilton’s participation in qualifying at risk, with Ferrari mechanics facing a crucial race against time to repair significant damage to his car.
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McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri showed excellent pace, finishing the final practice in third and fourth respectively, suggesting they could challenge the dominance of Ferrari and Red Bull in the upcoming qualifying session.
Tyre troubles create qualifying uncertainty
FP3 began slowly, with slippery track conditions limiting running during the early stages. Franco Colapinto and Liam Lawson were among the few drivers initially on track, but grip was noticeably low, with Lawson notably remarking over team radio: “the track is very low grip.”
When the pace picked up, the session saw an engaging battle emerge between Leclerc, Norris, and Verstappen. Initially, Norris topped the leaderboard, briefly trading fastest laps with Leclerc before Verstappen stamped his authority, becoming the first driver to break below the 1m12s barrier with a lap of 1:11.961s on medium tyres.
Verstappen later improved to 1:11.233s, a time quicker than Leclerc’s Friday benchmark. However, attempts by the Red Bull driver to find further gains on the softer C6 compound proved frustratingly unsuccessful. Verstappen repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction, stating clearly via team radio: “I have no grip.”
In contrast, Leclerc found significantly more performance late in the session, first setting a 1:11.179s lap before improving to the final benchmark time of 1:10.953s just moments before Hamilton’s crash brought out the red flags.
Elsewhere, impressive performances from Alex Albon in sixth for Williams, and Liam Lawson in seventh for Racing Bulls highlighted the tight competition behind the leading teams. Carlos Sainz took eighth in the second Williams, followed closely by Yuki Tsunoda of Red Bull and Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who rounded out the top ten ahead of teammate George Russell.
Notably, FP3 also saw penalties confirmed for two drivers: Lance Stroll, who will take a one-place grid drop following an incident in FP1, and Ollie Bearman, facing a substantial 10-place penalty for breaching red flag rules during FP2.
As qualifying approaches, Leclerc’s pace has certainly marked him as the favourite for pole position at his home race. Yet with uncertainties surrounding tyre strategy and Hamilton’s participation now under question, the battle on Monaco’s unforgiving streets is far from decided.
