Verstappen ahead, Ferrari and Alonso are close

After the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna GP, it's time for the Monaco weekend, the most prestigious street race in motorsport. Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are the favorites to win, of course. However, in Monaco, anything can happen.

FP1

Right after the start of the session, the reigning world champion was arguing with the team that the clutch wasn't working well, and the car was hard to drive. It surely was unexpected for Red Bull.

Ferrari started on the right foot. Both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz were feeling comfortable and were setting good times with medium tires.

McLaren, especially with Lando Norris, was performing well. The Briton was consistently in the top 7, a good starting result for the team.

With 20 minutes to go, after a calm session, the red flag was deployed. Hulkenberg hit the wall at the "Nouvelle chicane" and the marshals had to clean the track.

In the final minutes of the session, the fight for P1 was very tight. Moreover, FP1 ended with another red flag. Alexander Albon hit the wall in turn 1 with four minutes to go. He had to leave the car in the middle of the track, thus, the session was over with still a few minutes on the clock.

Sainz grabbed P1 with Fernando Alonso in P2 and Lewis Hamilton third. It seemed that Ferrari could have a good performance this weekend and even reach the podium. Mercedes also improved and Alonso keeps being consistent. Red Bull didn't have the best start to the weekend and will have to sort things out before FP2.

FP2

Immediately after the start, the rhythm was competitive, and it was easy to see that every car had a better set-up.

Red Bull solved Verstappen's issues as he confirmed he was feeling way better inside the cockpit.

Ferrari and Alonso showed their competitiveness, demonstrating that they can be in the fight against Red Bull and challenge them for the win.

Norris was still surprising, as he was sitting in P5, Valtteri Bottas was also doing a decent job, putting his Alfa in P8.

With 17 minutes to go, Sainz hit the wall at the swimming pool section and the red flag was deployed.

The session restarted with 10 minutes to go.

At the end of the day, it was Max Verstappen ahead of everyone, with Leclerc and Sainz behind. Alonso was fourth and an incredible Norris fifth. Hamilton, Perez, Bottas, Gasly, and Ocon completed the top ten.

Plus, we also learned that both Ferrari and Alonso might have a chance of winning against Red Bull in Monaco. It's going to be interesting how it goes tomorrow and on Sunday.