Max Verstappen cracks Monaco wall joke as Red Bull closes on Ferrari
Max Verstappen has joked about where he needs to crash in Monaco to get home early.
Max Verstappen joked that crashing into the right Monaco barrier would at least get him home quicker after Red Bull emerged as Ferrari’s biggest threat on Friday.
Despite concerns that the Monte Carlo street circuit’s bumps could derail his challenge, Verstappen made a positive start to the Monaco Grand Prix weekend with back-to-back P3s on Friday.
Max Verstappen encouraged by Red Bull Monaco practice pace
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He finished the opening practice half a second behind the leading Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, before closing the gap to 0.168s in the second session that Lewis Hamilton topped.
It was the four-time world champion’s best start to a non-Sprint race weekend in F1 2026, with Verstappen having finished the only practice session in Miami second fastest.
“It was quite a positive day, to be honest,” Verstappen said.
“We felt quite good in the car, and it is particularly important, especially around Monaco, to have a positive feeling in the car. We just need to work to fine-tune a few things.
“Ferrari is looking really strong, so we will try to be as close as we can to them.
“We are happy where we are at the moment, but we are always trying to extract more from the car, so let’s see what we can do for qualifying.”
Verstappen, like many of his rival Formula 1 drivers, is racing at home this weekend with his residence overlooking the circuit.
Asked if he might wave at his home as he races past, he told the Dutch media as per RacingNews365: “I don’t know, I haven’t thought about that yet.
“Hopefully, I don’t park it in the wall on the other side. Then I’d be home in no time.”
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Rivals wary of Max Verstappen’s pace after practice
Although Ferrari clinched the 1-2 in both Friday practices, Leclerc is wary of the threat Verstappen poses to his bid to a fourth Monaco GP pole position.
Ferrari arrived in Monaco as the pre-race favourites, rivals and pundits tipping Hamilton to challenge Leclerc.
But after Friday’s running, the Monegasque driver reckons Verstappen could also be in the mix.
“Max has been very strong. Red Bull have been very strong, and Lewis has been very strong,” said Leclerc.
“I’m not so worried, but it’s going to be a tough qualifying for sure, and it will be very tight.”
Mercedes’ George Russell also noted Verstappen’s pace was up there with the Ferraris.
“Yeah, we expected Ferrari to be the guys to beat. A lot of people thought it was just chat, but clearly they are the team to beat,” he told F1TV.
“I think Red Bull have also been a bit of a surprise for us.
“We knew out of the races so far this was going to be our most challenging. We need to make the same step again overnight and I don’t think we nailed it today.
“There is room to improve, but definitely Ferrari are the team.”
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