Valtteri Bottas almost made it an all Finnish front row for the Monaco Grand Prix this evening but instead he is forced to settle for row two after he was beaten to row one by the two Ferrari's.
It hasn't been the easiest of weekend's for Mercedes with both cars struggling with tyre temperatures after FP1 on Thursday. However, while it took an extra lap to get the tyres to their optimum, Valtteri was able to put his car in P3, only missing out on pole position by a mere .045
“This weekend has been a bit tricky for us,” the Finn said. “We started well in FP1 before getting a bit lost with the set-up in FP2. Then it was difficult to get a lap together in Qualifying as well. It takes two to three laps to build the temperature up and find the right balance and feel for the car.”
We all remember what happened the last time Ferrari locked out the front row this season and Valtteri started behind them in third place, and as the Finn says, anything is possible in the race, especially in a race around the streets of Monaco.
“It was very close but Ferrari seems to have the upper hand here - they were very strong. Of course it would be nice to start on the front row but anything is possible from P3 on the grid. It's difficult to overtake here but it's definitely a race of opportunity. Tomorrow is Monaco, where anything can happen.”
