2015 F1 Round 6 Monaco Grand Prix Qualifying – Hamilton’s first Monaco pole, both Red Bulls in top five

Hamilton claimed his first Monaco pole with a 1:15.098 in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix on May 23. Rosberg was second, 0.342 seconds behind, with Vettel third.

Rosberg led Q1 with a 1:16.528, followed by Hamilton on 1:16.588. Nasr was 16th, Bottas 17th and Ericsson 18th, with the two Marussias 19th and 20th. All five were eliminated in the opening session.

Rosberg was fastest again in Q2 with a 1:15.471. Alonso’s McLaren stopped after Sainte Devote, ending his bid to progress. His time in the session was 1:26.632, leaving him 15th.

On the final runs, Rosberg locked up at Sainte Devote and went into the escape road, bringing out yellow flags that affected the drivers behind. Grosjean was eliminated in 11th, followed by Button in 12th, Hülkenberg in 13th and Massa in 14th.

On his first Q3 run, Hamilton set a 1:15.304, ahead of Rosberg on 1:15.440 and Vettel on 1:15.849. Hamilton improved to 1:15.098 on his second run to secure pole.

Ricciardo qualified fourth, with team-mate Kvyat fifth. Räikkönen was sixth and Pérez seventh. Both Red Bulls qualified ahead of both Toro Rossos.

Sainz was eighth in the timed classification, Maldonado ninth and Verstappen tenth. After qualifying, Sainz was required to start the race from the pit lane for failing to report for FIA weighing. The penalty did not change his position in the qualifying classification.

Grosjean received a separate five-place grid penalty for changing his gearbox. Pérez recorded a 1:16.808 on his first Q3 run and had no tyres left for a second attempt, but still finished qualifying in seventh.