Formula 2 qualifying, late Friday morning, was very lively, as expected, and it is finally Felipe Drugovich (MP Motorsport), the championship leader, who will start on pole position for the Feature Race, Sunday morning at 9:50 a.m.

New Zealander Liam Lawson (Carlin Motorsport), son of Eddie, an ex-motorcycle world champion, had stolen pole position, from the Brazilian driver, in the last minutes of the first half-session, that of Group A: Drugovich had just set his best lap when he made a mistake at the Antony-Noghès corner, his car having to park at the start of the finishing straight, on the right, against the safety barriers. By the time the yellow flags were waved, Liam Lawson had gone through, setting a better time than him, with in his wake Ayumu Iwasa, the surprising Japanese from the DAMS team, 2nd in this session.

An investigation was then ordered and the conclusions fell at the end of the afternoon, the race marshals having listened to all parties involved. Lawson (5 places) and Iwasa (10 places) were penalized for not having slowed down enough under the yellow flags, and Drugovich therefore retained the benefit of his best lap (1:21.348), before hitting the safety barriers at the Antony-Noghes turn. Nothing changed for Théo Pourchaire (ART Grand Prix), best time in Group B (1:21.535), during a session definitively interrupted by a red flag, two minutes from the end, following a huge crash by Jake Hughes at the Swimming Pool. The Frenchman, who won here last year, will start alongside Drugovich on Sunday, with a good chance of winning twice in a row in Monaco.

The Feature Race (42 laps or 60 minutes), with Drugovich and Pourchaire on the front row, will start Sunday at 9:50 am. For the Sprint Race on Saturday at 5:40 pm (30 laps or 45 minutes), Hughes who will be in pole position, thanks to his 10th time in qualifying and the fact that the grid will be reversed for the Top 10. A lucky guy, after all.