Ferrari's low speed strength should put it on pole in Monaco - Norris

Lando Norris believes Ferrari is most likely to be on pole position at the Monaco Grand Prix due to the strengths and weaknesses of its 2026 car.

Ferrari has delivered a competitive chassis under new regulations but appears to be at a deficit to Mercedes and McLaren from a power unit perspective, often fading after stronger starts to races. With the tight and twisty nature of Monaco reducing the impact of outright power, Norris believes that Ferrari will be the team to beat this weekend, despite recent gains from McLaren through upgrades.

“I think we're encouraged still,” Norris said. “I think it's clear that they're still a good step ahead. I still think [Canada] is a very outlying track, and I think Monaco again is another track that's very different. I think to really wait and see how we're going to be in Barcelona is something I'm excited for.

“Monaco was also a track that was decent to us last year – obviously I think a Ferrari will be on pole next weekend in Monaco, their low-speed performance is far better than everyone else – so I look forward to both. I look forward to Monaco because Monaco had good success there last year. It was one of my best weekends, most exciting weekends.”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella agrees with Norris, saying there are multiple aspects of the Ferrari that should be well-suited to Monaco.

“I think when we look at the overlay based on the GPS speed, we can see that Ferrari is definitely a competitive chassis in the corners,” Stella said. “Like the first sector [in Canada], they've always been very competitive. It's not only a low-speed sector, but it's also a sector with curbing. Normally, these features tend to reward in a track like Monaco.

“In addition to that, we see, for instance in Canada, that Ferrari loses time in the straights, but you don't have much of that in Monaco. So I think Lando is pretty right in seeing Ferrari as possibly the favorite car for a pole position in Monaco.”

Despite the backing for Ferrari, Stella says Monaco is a track that should suit McLaren more than Mercedes given the reduced reliance on power unit performance, and that it could be in the mix to challenge for victory itself.

“We definitely can say that at the current level of development, the McLaren car is probably best suited for low-speed corners rather than medium and high-speed corners where we see Ferrari and Mercedes being superior,” he said. “So this should set us in a good position for Monaco.

“At the same time, unlike how it looks, in Monaco there are a few medium and high-speed corners. If you think the Casino corner is more than 150kph, the Tabac is 180kph, the Swimming Pool is more than 200kph. So actually, medium and high-speed performance is important in Monaco, but some of the low-speed is extremely low-speed.

“In a way, it's in its own range, like if you think the slow-speed section in the second sector. So it's one of its own, I definitely see Ferrari probably the favorite, but McLaren can be competitive and we may try and repeat the achievement last year in Monaco.”