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Max Verstappen was elated after risking it all on the streets of Monte-Carlo to claim his maiden F1 Monaco GP pole by narrowly edging out Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso.
The Dutchman was the fastest driver in two out of three free practice sessions heading into qualifying. Verstappen kept that same momentum in Q1 and Q2 while teammate Sergio Perez was eliminated early on with a heavy shunt into Saint Devote. The reigning world champion struggled to extract the most from his car in the first sector of the circuit.
Despite his difficulties, Max Verstappen was able to kiss a few barriers in the final sector and steal pole position from under Alonso's nose by a margin of 0.084 seconds right at the end of Q3.
In his post-session interview with 2013 Le Mans winner Loic Duval for Sky Sports, Max Verstappen elaborated on his performance during qualifying. The Red Bull driver said:
"I am very happy. I mean, we knew that this was going to be a little bit of a struggle for us this weekend to get everything together. Yesterday wasn't the best start but I think we kept on improving and kept on being better. But then in qualifying, you need to go all out and risk it all."
The 25-year-old went on to add:
"My first sector was not ideal. In my final lap, I think Turn 1 was a bit cautious but then I knew that I was behind. (In) the last sector, I just gave it everything I had, clipped a few barriers but of course very happy to be on pole here for the first time."
"We just need to keep it clean and calm": Max Verstappen on plan for 2023 F1 Monaco GP
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen reiterated the importance of having a clean getaway off the line after clinching pole position for the 2023 F1 Monaco GP.
The Dutchman will line up alongside Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso, who has two wins and four podiums in the Principality, on the front row for the race on Sunday.
When asked by Loic Duval to illustrate what the priority needs to be when the lights go out on race day in the aforementioned interview with Sky Sports, Max Verstappen said:
"We need a clean start. It's a short run to Turn 1 and in Monaco, a lot of things can happen. Safety car. Rain. You name it. There is always a bit of chaos involved but I think race pace-wise the car is quick so that is not the problem. We just need to keep it clean and calm."
Max Verstappen has one win at this venue and will be keen to add to that tally, especially since his closest title rival this season, Sergio Perez, will be starting from the back on a track where overtaking is at a premium.
Maximizing his points haul this weekend could go a long way toward helping Verstappen get his third consecutive Drivers' World Championship.
