Monaco Grand Prix exposes Aston Martin woes and Mercedes surprise

At the Monaco Grand Prix, Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso said the AMR26 suffers from chronic under‑steer and front‑axle grip loss. Gear‑box problems forced an early pit stop after he hit the wall, damaging his front wing, and he qualified 21st, finishing near the back while his teammate also struggled.

Mercedes driver George Russell was perplexed after Italian rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli claimed pole, beating Max Verstappen by roughly four‑tenths of a second. Russell qualified sixth and noted he could not match Antonelli’s tyre‑warming and overall pace, describing the performance gap as “I don’t understand”.