Schumacher takes pole in Monaco – but starts sixth

Michael Schumacher takes pole position in the 2012 Monaco F1 Grand Prix, but starts sixth after a penalty from Barcelona.

Turn the clock back a day or two at the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix and all the clever money would have been on Lotus dominating proceedings. But 48 hours is a long time in a 2012 season of tyres that dictate performance seemingly based on which way the wind’s blowing.

So instead of Lotus dominating proceedings we had Mercedes qualifying strongly, with Michael Schumacher taking pole and team mate Nico Rosberg in third. But a five place penalty for Schumacher – brought to Monaco from Barcelona as a penalty for bending Bruno Senna – sees Rosberg promoted to the front row in second palce alongside the new pole sitter, Mark Webber in the Red Bull.

Behind Webber and Rosberg are the McLaren of Hamilton – who looked chuffed with his third place – and the Lotus of Grosjean. But their respective team mates fared less well with Kimmi Raikkonen’s Lotus in seventh and Jenson Button’s McLaren in thirteenth after he failed to make Q3.

For the first time this year Alonso was nearly usurped by Massa, but the Ferrari’s end up with Alonso on fifth and Massa in seventh, split by the displaced Schumacher. Reigning champion Sebastian Vettel managed only a poor ninth in his Red Bull and the qualifying top ten was rounded out by Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India.

If Monaco goes to form and Red Bull get a win with Webber, it will be the first time in F1 history that six different drivers have won the six opening races to a season.