Jenson Button topped the Thursday times at Monaco before an unexpected rain shower halted the improving times.
The McLaren driver set a 1:15.746s on Pirelli’s super-soft tyre, and could not be beaten as rain after 30 minutes of the session spoiled what looked to be an entertaining battle at the top of the time sheets.
Compared to his rivals, Button’s time was impressive, but the shower meant that he was the only driver to get the full benefit of the super-soft compound on a dry track.
That lap may prove to be the last dry lap of the weekend, with forecasters predicting showers on Saturday, and possible showers on Sunday.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso set the pace in the opening session, plus the fourth fastest time in the second. His team-mate Felipe Massa was also strong in both sessions, signalling a potential return to race-winning form for the famous team.
Neither of Australia’s drivers Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing) and Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso) made any significant impressions on either sessions, with Webber’s Practice 2 result the best of pair.
As is tradition at Monaco, Grand Prix teams will rest tomorrow (Friday) ahead of Saturday’s qualifying and Sunday’s race.
Practice 1
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Time/Retired | Gap | Laps |
| 1 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:16.265 | 22 | |
| 2 | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus-Renault | 1:16.630 | 0.365 | 17 |
| 3 | 15 | Sergio Perez | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:16.711 | 0.446 | 19 |
| 4 | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:16.747 | 0.482 | 12 |
| 5 | 18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams-Renault | 1:16.760 | 0.495 | 20 |
| 6 | 6 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:16.843 | 0.578 | 19 |
| 7 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:17.038 | 0.773 | 21 |
| 8 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:17.190 | 0.925 | 13 |
| 9 | 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull Racing-Renault | 1:17.222 | 0.957 | 14 |
| 10 | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:17.261 | 0.996 | 18 |
| 11 | 7 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:17.413 | 1.148 | 14 |
| 12 | 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India-Mercedes | 1:17.631 | 1.366 | 18 |
| 13 | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull Racing-Renault | 1:18.106 | 1.841 | 14 |
| 14 | 17 | Jean-Eric Vergne | STR-Ferrari | 1:18.209 | 1.944 | 25 |
| 15 | 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | STR-Ferrari | 1:18.252 | 1.987 | 28 |
| 16 | 11 | Paul di Resta | Force India-Mercedes | 1:18.302 | 2.037 | 16 |
| 17 | 19 | Bruno Senna | Williams-Renault | 1:18.617 | 2.352 | 20 |
| 18 | 20 | Heikki Kovalainen | Caterham-Renault | 1:19.039 | 2.774 | 20 |
| 19 | 21 | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham-Renault | 1:19.341 | 3.076 | 16 |
| 20 | 23 | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT-Cosworth | 1:20.838 | 4.573 | 26 |
| 21 | 25 | Charles Pic | Marussia-Cosworth | 1:20.895 | 4.630 | 18 |
| 22 | 24 | Timo Glock | Marussia-Cosworth | 1:21.638 | 5.373 | 9 |
| 23 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT-Cosworth | 1:22.423 | 6.158 | 15 |
| 24 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus-Renault | No time | 1 |
Practice 2
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Time/Retired | Gap | Laps |
| 1 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:15.746 | 17 | |
| 2 | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus-Renault | 1:16.138 | 0.392 | 19 |
| 3 | 6 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:16.602 | 0.856 | 21 |
| 4 | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:16.661 | 0.915 | 23 |
| 5 | 18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams-Renault | 1:16.820 | 1.074 | 20 |
| 6 | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:17.021 | 1.275 | 15 |
| 7 | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull Racing-Renault | 1:17.148 | 1.402 | 23 |
| 8 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:17.153 | 1.407 | 22 |
| 9 | 7 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:17.293 | 1.547 | 11 |
| 10 | 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull Racing-Renault | 1:17.303 | 1.557 | 21 |
| 11 | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:17.375 | 1.629 | 19 |
| 12 | 11 | Paul di Resta | Force India-Mercedes | 1:17.395 | 1.649 | 21 |
| 13 | 19 | Bruno Senna | Williams-Renault | 1:17.655 | 1.909 | 18 |
| 14 | 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India-Mercedes | 1:17.800 | 2.054 | 25 |
| 15 | 15 | Sergio Perez | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:18.251 | 2.505 | 24 |
| 16 | 21 | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham-Renault | 1:18.440 | 2.694 | 25 |
| 17 | 17 | Jean-Eric Vergne | STR-Ferrari | 1:18.522 | 2.776 | 22 |
| 18 | 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | STR-Ferrari | 1:18.808 | 3.062 | 26 |
| 19 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus-Renault | 1:19.267 | 3.521 | 25 |
| 20 | 24 | Timo Glock | Marussia-Cosworth | 1:19.309 | 3.563 | 29 |
| 21 | 20 | Heikki Kovalainen | Caterham-Renault | 1:20.029 | 4.283 | 13 |
| 22 | 25 | Charles Pic | Marussia-Cosworth | 1:20.240 | 4.494 | 21 |
| 23 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT-Cosworth | 1:20.631 | 4.885 | 12 |
| 24 | 23 | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT-Cosworth | 1:20.886 | 5.140 | 10 |
See below for Speedcafe.com’s Formula 1 Race Guide ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.
