Christian Horner admits that Max Verstappen was particularly frustrated after qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, having been unable to complete his final flying lap for a second year running. The session was brought to an end with 30 seconds to spare on the clock due to Verstappen's teammate, Sergio Perez, hitting the barrier at the entrance of the tunnel. Carlos Sainz then spun at the same corner and knocked into the Red Bull, causing both cars to block the track. This meant that the opportunity to improve was taken away, and as such Verstappen will start from fourth on the grid. Charles Leclerc secured pole position for his home race, while Sainz took P2 and Perez claimed P3.
Horner reflects on "disappointing" session for Red Bull
Despite the red flags ending proceedings prematurely, Horner does not think that his drivers would have been in the fight for pole either way, "I don't think that pole was on today," Horner told Sky Sports F1 . "Charles was mighty, so congrats to him because we couldn't have done that time. It's a shame, because I think both of the drivers could have actually improved a little. "Max certainly was significantly up, but [it's] one of those things. Checo [Perez], he's been on it all weekend. "It's still P3 and P4. There may be a bit of weather around tomorrow. [It's] disappointing not to get one on the front row, but we'll fight from there."
Verstappen's efforts thwarted for a second year
Horner feels that there was an added frustration for Verstappen due to similar circumstances unfolding during qualifying for last year's race in Monaco, where Leclerc crashed late on in the session, and as a consequence other drivers could not improve on their times. "It's the second time," the Team Principal said. "There's nothing more frustrating than not finishing, being on a lap you can see is up, and it's the second year in a row it's happened to him, so it's unfortunate." Red Bull will try their best to fight back on Sunday, according to Horner. "I don't think we give anything to anybody," he commented. "I think we'll fight as hard as we can. I think there's weather, Safety Cars, a lot that can happen, and let's see. "We're still on the second row, so it's good to be disappointed with that."
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