Formula 1 Focus: Monaco magic puts Antonelli well on his way to becoming an all-time great

[p][b][a href="https://open.spotify.com/episode/6hK8IA0KtaRtPVP9Ntzu7k?si=JPgy9wxwTQmXw_PJNRaFRA&nd=1&dlsi=c06f9c9ad2a1463a"]You can listen to this article via Spotify[/a][/b].[/p][p]I always have mixed feelings when the Monaco Grand Prix comes around.[/p][p]Its illustrious history and stunning setting make the weekend as a whole unmissable, and the immense challenge and importance of qualifying make Saturday one of the most exciting days of the season, but the fact that overtaking is all but impossible usually makes the race quite the opposite.[/p][p]That issue persisted this time around, even with the 2026 cars being smaller and better at following each other closely, but some late drama gave us plenty in the way of entertainment.[/p][p]These are my main takeaways from the race.[/p][h2]Antonelli on his way to becoming an all-time great[/h2][embed guid="9d6278ff-f8fa-4c02-b658-fa00b6ba3e9f" url="https://x.com/F1/status/2063703791103312284" social-type="twitter" /][p]While the race may have become something of a procession in the modern era, the Monaco Grand Prix remains one of the best barometers of greatness in Formula 1.[/p][p]Mastering it requires remarkable precision, consistency and concentration, with even the smallest of mistakes proving costly. If a driver's good enough to win there, they're probably good enough to win a world championship, as is shown by the fact that every title since 1998 has been lifted by someone who has tasted victory in Monte Carlo.[/p][p]And if a driver's good enough to do so at the age of 19, they're probably going to win a fair few of them.[/p][p]It would take a brave man to bet against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/antonelli-andrea-kimi/ptGu0mT1/"]Kimi Antonelli[/a] doing so at this point after the Italian became Monaco's youngest race-winner ever in what was his fifth victory on the bounce, especially given the nature of his victory.[/p][p]He had to out-qualify numerous top drivers who had cars that were evenly matched with his, as shown by the fact that Red Bulls and Ferraris out-qualified the other Mercedes of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/russell-george/xxF56RaN/"]George Russell[/a]. He then had to produce a perfect drive on the streets of Monte Carlo, in only his second time driving on them in an F1 car. And after doing both, he had to deal with the immense pressure of a late restart, in which F1's most successful driver ever was alongside him.[/p][p]The fact that he was able to do all that and win his fifth race in a row has not only firmly established him as the 2026 champion in waiting, but also as F1's biggest talent since [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/verstappen-max/UV3mgeXB/"]Max Verstappen[/a] joined the grid as a teenager just over a decade ago.[/p][p]In Verstappen and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/hamilton-lewis/tI5Vpe1h/"]Lewis Hamilton[/a], two drivers on the current grid have already sealed their place in the pantheon of greats, and right now, it's looking like Antonelli will be the third.[/p][h2]The tables have well and truly turned at Ferrari[/h2][embed guid="2b08748d-411c-4ccf-bf2f-6ccc37fc3fa8" url="https://x.com/ScuderiaFerrari/status/2063645929362571401" social-type="twitter" /][p]While Hamilton himself may be the [i]greatest [/i]driver to ever race in F1, it was still hard to see him surpassing [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/leclerc-charles/KlCOSRub/"]Charles Leclerc[/a] as Ferrari's main man when he joined last year, but six races into his second season, he's doing just that.[/p][p]Out-qualifying Leclerc is always impressive, but especially so when that qualifying session is taking place in the Monegasque's own backyard, a place where he's claimed pole position three times. Hamilton did just that, becoming the first teammate to get the better of him in Monaco's most important session since 2019, and then comfortably kept the other Ferrari at bay on Sunday before it crashed into the barriers and out of the race.[/p][p]The seven-time world champion has now beaten Leclerc in the last three races and in four of this season's six. He has more podiums than everyone except Antonelli and more points than everyone except Antonelli. He's the highest he's been in the standings since narrowly losing the 2021 title fight, and hasn't consistently performed at such a high level since that campaign.[/p][p]This could put Ferrari in uncharted territory. As a product of their academy, Leclerc is the apple of their eye. He's always had their full backing, quite clearly being their lead driver ever since he got the better of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/vettel-sebastian/QcDxijmq/"]Sebastian Vettel[/a] in his first season in red. But what happens if it's the man across the garage who's fighting for the title?[/p][p]That could happen if Hamilton continues to be stronger than Leclerc and Ferrari can close the gap to Mercedes, and the Scuderia will then have to make a decision. Do they give Hamilton their upgrades first? Do they give him the better strategies? Do they order Leclerc to let him overtake him if necessary? Or do they stick by their golden boy?[/p][p]It's admittedly unlikely that they'll be forced to make such calls given Antonelli's lead and dominance at the front of the field, but in the back of his mind, Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur should start thinking about what he'd do in such a scenario, because if Lewis Hamilton is getting back to his best, you'd be mad to write him off.[/p][h2][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/hadjar-isack/8SAk38Ui/"]Hadjar[/a] finally getting the results he deserves[/h2][embed guid="0817c164-5fa6-41e0-9ddb-290649aad9eb" url="https://x.com/redbullracing/status/2063659050798039098" social-type="twitter" /][p]Joining Antonelli and Hamilton on the podium was Isack Hadjar, who scored the first top-three finish of his Red Bull career, and it was a result that he fully deserved.[/p][p]At face value, the young Frenchman didn't make the best of starts to his first season as Verstappen's teammate, having just four points to the Dutchman's 26 after the first four rounds, but even so, I'd been massively impressed by him. Those who occupied that seat before him were destroyed by Verstappen, getting absolutely nowhere near him, but Hadjar was more than holding his own in qualifying and was just being prevented from really showing what he could on race day by some bouts of bad luck.[/p][p]In the two rounds since then though, he's very much proven that he's the team's most promising number two driver in years.[/p][p]After producing a good drive to finish fifth in Canada, he started in the same position in Monaco thanks to a strong qualifying performance, and immediately moved up a spot when Verstappen retired at the start of the race. Staying that high was going to be a huge challenge due to technical issues that left him having to hold off faster cars driven by George Russell and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/piastri-oscar/MqKAIeUf/"]Oscar Piastri[/a], but he stepped up, not putting a foot wrong from start to finish.[/p][p]His reward was the second podium of his career and 15 points that move him to within 14 of Verstappen and above everyone outside of the top four teams. [/p][p]With him also making Q3 at all six rounds and managing to out-qualify his teammate once, it's been a massively impressive start to life in what has been F1's most difficult seat to occupy for a long time now.[/p][image alt="Author" id="b7b6515a-5b30-4797-beac-cff433b9ba89" credit-line="Flashscore" guid="1079b3d6-369f-4782-a17c-9a70895242e5" original-width="1200" original-height="380" /]