Nothing is impossible, says Hamilton of Monaco chances

MONACO, June 6 : Lewis Hamilton believes he can still top the podium for the first time for Ferrari despite missing out on the front row of the grid for Sunday's Monaco Grand Prix.

The Briton and Monegasque team mate Charles Leclerc dominated Friday's practice sessions with Ferrari tipped to break Mercedes' vice-like grip of the season.

In a thrilling qualifying battle on Saturday, Hamilton topped the time sheets in the final minutes of Q3 only for first Red Bull's Max Verstappen and then championship leader Kimi Antonelli to relegate him to the second row.

Hamilton finished just over two tenths of a second slower with team mate Leclerc fourth fastest.

With overtaking notoriously difficult on the narrow and unforgiving Monaco street circuit, Hamilton knows he will have his work cut out, but he did win in 2016 from third on the grid.

"You know how these races go. It's very, very difficult. I hope we can get a really good start and maybe apply some pressure. I probably need rain. But nothing's impossible," the seven-time world champion said.

"It is a shame that this race is normally a procession, in the sense of following one another. The car is overheating; the brakes are overheating with the way the track is.

"But I'll try to get in there and hassle these two (Antonelli and Verstappen) as much as I can and force them into not making certain corners."

Hamilton's move to Ferrari has so far been underwhelming and he endured a mediocre 2025 campaign. 

But the 41-year-old finished second behind Antonelli in Canada in the last race and has out-qualified Leclerc for the second race in succession.

While he was left puzzled by Ferrari's drop-off in performance from practice to qualifying in Monaco, he remained upbeat about his