At a glance
A “lap record” needs a session label. In the same 2024 season, Monza’s qualifying pole lap averaged 262.9 km/h, while its fastest race lap averaged 256.1 km/h. Monaco’s comparable figures were 171.0 and 162.0 km/h. These are calculated averages from official circuit lengths and lap times, not measures of driver quality across different tracks.
- Monza · 2024 pole1:19.327Lando Norris · Q3
- Monza · race fastest1:21.432Lando Norris · lap 53
- Monaco · 2024 pole1:10.270Charles Leclerc · Q3
- Monaco · race fastest1:14.165Lewis Hamilton · lap 63
One phrase, several records
F1 coverage uses “lap record” for different benchmarks. The circuit guide’s listed lap record is generally the fastest race lap at that venue. A pole lap is a qualifying benchmark, while a practice lap can be the quickest lap of an entire event weekend. The session matters because cars and drivers face different conditions and objectives; a Saturday qualifying time does not automatically replace a race-lap record.
Monza makes that distinction concrete. Before the 2024 event, Formula 1 listed Rubens Barrichello’s 1:21.046 from 2004 as the circuit race-lap record. Norris’s 2024 race fastest lap was 1:21.432, 0.386 seconds slower. In 2025, Max Verstappen recorded a 1:18.792 in qualifying, which F1 described as a new Monza lap record and fastest average-speed lap in F1 history. The 2025 Monza race page continued to list Norris’s 1:20.901 from the 2025 race as the circuit’s “Fastest lap time.” That difference shows why a record claim should name the session.
What the two 2024 weekends show
Average speed makes the difference in circuit length easier to interpret, but it does not turn the observations into a controlled comparison. A single Q3 lap is optimized for qualifying; the fastest race lap is set under race fuel, traffic and tyre conditions. The 2025 Monza record in the table is a separate historical reference, not one of the 2024 comparison points.
The chart compares four single-lap observations: pole in Q3 and the fastest lap during each Grand Prix. It converts each official time to average speed using circuit length ÷ lap time × 3,600. Monza’s 2024 Q3 pole (79.327 seconds) averaged 262.9 km/h; Norris’s 81.432-second race lap averaged 256.1 km/h. At Monaco, Leclerc’s 70.270-second pole averaged 171.0 km/h, and Hamilton’s 74.165-second race lap averaged 162.0 km/h.
Average speeds calculated from official 2024 pole and race-fastest-lap times and each circuit’s published length; session and circuit are encoded in the label.
Average Speed Kmh
Average speed in km/h; time in minutes:seconds.milliseconds; lengths in km. · 2024 Monaco and Italian Grand Prix qualifying poles and race fastest laps
| Observation | Average Speed Kmh |
|---|---|
| Monza qualifying pole | 262.897 |
| Monza race fastest lap | 256.100 |
| Monaco qualifying pole | 170.958 |
| Monaco race fastest lap | 161.979 |
The qualifying-to-race fastest-lap gap was 2.105 seconds at Monza and 3.895 seconds at Monaco. This is not a controlled test: pole laps occurred in qualifying, race laps amid fuel, traffic, tyre and strategic constraints. Nor should absolute speed compare drivers between circuits. Monza is 5.793 km; Monaco is 3.337 km and much more constrained by its street layout. Lap length, corner sequence, straights and braking zones shape elapsed time and average speed.
Use records with their context
| Circuit | Length | 2024 pole | 2024 race fastest lap | F1 listed race-lap record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monza | 5.793 km | 1:19.327 · Norris | 1:21.432 · Norris | 1:20.901 · Norris, 2025 |
| Monaco | 3.337 km | 1:10.270 · Leclerc | 1:14.165 · Hamilton | 1:12.909 · Hamilton, 2021 |
For track-by-track context, browse our Circuits hub, including Monza and Monaco. Use a precise label—race lap record, qualifying lap, or event-weekend fastest lap—before comparing any headline time.
Sources and method
FIA 2024 official pole and race-fastest-lap timing: F1 2024 pole positions, Italian Grand Prix fastest laps, and the FIA Monaco 2024 race-fastest-laps document. Circuit lengths and listed records: F1 Italian GP circuit information and F1 Monaco circuit guide. The prior Monza race record is reported in F1’s 2024 Italian GP fact sheet; the 2025 qualifying record claim is dated in its 2025 report. Speeds are calculated from circuit length/time; displayed to 0.1 km/h in prose (dataset retains 0.001). They are averages, not peak speeds. Conditions, car configuration and traffic differ, and 2025 Monza qualifying is not a race-lap record.