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Max Verstappen Struggles in Monaco as Youngsters Shine in Chaotic Practice Sessions
Max Verstappen and the Red Bull team experienced a tough and humbling day at the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix, with the defending world champion finishing a disappointing 10th in FP2. The session proved particularly challenging, not just for Verstappen but for several top drivers, in what turned into a chaotic and crash-filled Friday on the streets of Monte Carlo.
The most notable drama in FP2 came from Red Bull’s junior driver Isack Hadjar, who crashed twice in the session. The 19-year-old Racing Bulls driver first clipped the wall at the Nouvelle Chicane, damaging the rear of his car and triggering a red flag. Remarkably, after repairs, Hadjar returned to the track only to crash again at Sainte-Devote. Despite his incidents, Hadjar still managed to finish sixth, just behind his teammate Liam Lawson, who impressed with a P5 result. Both Racing Bulls drivers finished ahead of Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda, compounding Red Bull’s difficult session.
Elsewhere on the grid, chaos continued to unfold. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri made an unusual mistake, hitting the barriers at Sainte-Devote. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton endured a scare during FP1 when he briefly went airborne at the exit of the Swimming Pool section after running wide over the kerbs. Over team radio, Hamilton vented his frustration, blaming traffic for his off-track moment: “Ah **** mate, so much traffic. I have to box mate, I’ve just gone completely over the kerb.”
Hamilton’s Ferrari teammate, Charles Leclerc, was involved in two dramatic moments of his own. During FP1, he collided with Lance Stroll while attempting an overtake at the tight hairpin. Stroll, who appeared to move onto the racing line, clipped Leclerc’s front wing, leaving the Monegasque with significant damage and prompting another red flag to clear debris. Stroll suffered gearbox and rear suspension damage and was sidelined for the remainder of FP1. Despite this, Leclerc rebounded in FP2, topping the session with a fastest lap of 1:11.355.
The top four in FP2 saw Leclerc lead from Piastri (P2), Hamilton (P3), and Norris (P4), with all four separated by just over three-tenths of a second. Behind them, Lawson and Hadjar in the Racing Bulls surprised many by outperforming veterans like Alonso (P7), Albon (P8), and Verstappen (P10).
In FP1 earlier in the day, Leclerc was again the fastest man, ahead of Verstappen by 0.163 seconds. Norris, Albon, and Piastri rounded out the top five. However, the Red Bull team saw a steep drop-off between sessions, with both their main drivers finishing outside the top 10 in FP2.
As the Monaco weekend progresses, Red Bull will be under pressure to regroup and adapt quickly. With Ferrari and McLaren showing strong pace and rookie drivers like Lawson and Hadjar continuing to impress, Verstappen’s dominance is being seriously challenged on one of the calendar’s most unforgiving circuits.
