Hamilton tipped to deliver ‘big blow mentally’ to Leclerc in Monaco

Lewis Hamilton could land a major psychological blow on Charles Leclerc by winning Ferrari’s most important race of the season just days after his team-mate signed a new contract extension.

Ferrari lived up to its pre-race billing as the favourites for the Monte Carlo street race, with 1-2 finishes in both of Friday’s practice sessions.

Lewis Hamilton can pile pressure on Charles Leclerc in Monaco

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While Leclerc set the pace in FP1, two-tenths up on Hamilton, the Briton turned the tables on his teammate in the day’s second practice. Hamilton posted a 1:13.026 to finish a tenth faster than Leclerc.

Both teammates are hoping to capitalise on Ferrari’s early pace as they chase the team’s first Grand Prix win since 2024.

Should Hamilton beat Leclerc on Sunday, which would mark the second successive race in which he has finished ahead of his teammate, Juan Pablo Montoya believes that would be a huge blow for Leclerc.

“He [Hamilton] is in a really good position because he comes from a really solid street course to another,” Montoya told F1TV.

“You’ve got Charles with a new contract, and this is the perfect opportunity to beat Charles and put a lot of pressure on him.

“Charles’s contract was probably signed before Canada, I would assume. You have a new contract, and you have a bad weekend, then it gets announced.

“If Lewis could beat him here, it would be huge. It would be a big blow mentally.

“Yes, Charles is really good here, but you’ve got to remember you’ve got a seven-time world champion next to him.”

Hamilton and Leclerc are both past Monaco Grand Prix winners, the Briton triumphant in 2008, 2016 and 2019, while Leclerc claimed his only home win in 2024.

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Charles Leclerc wary of Lewis Hamilton threat

Leclerc admitted after Friday’s practice that Hamilton, along with Max Verstappen, poses the biggest threats to his chances of securing a fourth Monaco Grand Prix pole position.

The Monegasque took pole in Monaco in 2024 and went on to win the Grand Prix from lights to flag.

But with the Ferrari teammates and Verstappen separated by less than two-tenths in second practice, Leclerc concedes it will be a closely contested qualifying.

“Max has been very strong. Red Bull have been very strong and Lewis has been very strong,” said the eight-time Grand Prix winner.

“At the end of the day, it’s not been a disastrous day. We are very close to Lewis in FP2. I’m not so worried but it’s going to be a tough qualifying for sure, and it will be very tight.

“If we can do a step forward with the brakes, it can help us for the fight for pole.”

Explaining the brake issue that saw him twice go off the track at Mirabeau, Leclerc said: “We are facing quite a few issues on the brakes on my side, so we are trying to fix those.

“The confidence is not at the highest level at the moment. Apart from that, it’s a track I love and I’m sure if we manage to fix those [issues] it will be a good step forward.”

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