Mercedes AMG’s Lewis Hamilton will start at pole tomorrow at the 2015 Formula One Monaco Grand Prix after a stunning performance during today’s qualifying. Monaco is a race where qualifying is crucial and for Hamilton it was his first pole at the famous location.  

He put in an impressive 1:15.098 in Q3. The next fastest driver was Hamilton’s teammate Nico Rosberg who set a 1:15.440 to make it an all Mercedes front row. Then it was Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel third fastest with a 1:15.849 followed by Infiniti Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo showing an impressive return to form with his 1:16.041 in Q3.

Red Bull’s other driver Daniil Kvyat also did well, securing fifth position for tomorrow’s race. And starting next to him in sixth will be Ferrari’s other driver Kimi Räikkönen. In the fourth row will be Force India’s Sergio Perez and Lotus’ Pastor Maldonado, starting seventh and eighth respectively. Toro Rosso’s Carlos Sainz was actually eighth fastest but will start from pit lane after missing a mandatory invitation to the FIA weighbridge.

Starting ninth, meanwhile, will be Toro Rosso youngster Max Verstappen, and at tenth will be McLaren’s Jenson Button.

A big surprise today were Williams drivers Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas. Both drivers found it difficult to get the tires up to temperature and found an overall lack of grip which hindered their ability to make it into Q3. Räikkönen’s run was also affected by an impact with a wall.

Weather conditions are looking good, though there remains a slight chance of rain. Going into tomorrow’s race, Hamilton leads the 2015 Drivers’ Championship with 111 points. Rosberg is second with 91 points and Vettel is third with 80 points. In the Constructors’ Championship, Mercedes leads with 202 points followed by Ferrari with 132 points and Williams with 81 points.

_______________________________________

Follow Motor Authority on Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.