Verstappen scores first pole since Bahrain at Paul Ricard; Hamilton second
Verstappen scores first pole since Bahrain at Paul Ricard; Hamilton second
Max Verstappen topped a dramatic qualifying session at the French Grand Prix that was twice interrupted by red flags.
Verstappen backed up his early weekend pace to score his second pole position of the F1 season as Lewis Hamilton bounced back from his difficult start.
With a time of one minute 29.990secs, the Dutchman was the only driver to duck under the 90-second mark with Hamilton recovering with a last-ditch effort to join his title rival on the front row, the Mercedes driver missing out on pole by 0.258s.
Valtteri Bottas, who had looked strong all weekend, is third ahead of Sergio Perez.
After recording back to back poles through Charles Leclerc, Ferrari qualified fifth and seventh with Carlos Sainz the faster of the two drivers.
Pierre Gasly was sixth at his home race whilst Lando Norris, Fernando Alonso and Daniel Ricciardo completed the top 10.
As drivers began their first timed laps of Q1, Yuki Tsunoda caused the red flags to fly after losing control of the rear of his AlphaTauri through turn one.
The Japanese rookie backed the car into the barriers and was unable to get going again. It was Tsunoda's second such incident in Q1 this year after crashing at Imola and follows his Q3 crash last time out in Azerbaijan.
With 22 seconds remaining on the clock, the session was brought to a premature close when Mick Schumacher found the barriers at turn six. As was the case with Tsunoda, this was not the German's first incident in qualifying this season.
The lack of time remaining on the clock meant Q1 was not restarted meaning Nicholas Latifi, Kimi Raikkonen, Nikita Mazepin and Lance Stroll were the drivers to miss out on a Q2 berth, Stroll failing to register a time for Aston Martin after his first time was deleted for a track limits infringement.
Continuing his perfect run of Q2 appearances this year for Williams, George Russell was the only driver on the first runs to use the soft tyres. All the remaining drivers used the medium tyres with high levels of degradation making it the preferred tyre with which to start the race.
On the second runs, Daniel Ricciardo and Antonio Giovinazzi also switched to soft tyres as did Sergio Perez, although the Mexican was not aiming for an improved time being second already.
Of the two, Ricciardo slowed late on knowing he was already safe and Giovinazzi failed to improve.
Before completing his out lap, Lando Norris received a concerning radio message instructing him to return to the garage immediately. With no details forthcoming, the driver was told only that the issue would be explained later.
Alongside Schumacher, Esteban Ocon, Sebastian Vettel, Giovinazzi and Russell failed to reach the top 10.
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
F1 News Today: Horner reveals Verstappen SECRET as team reveal surprise name change
- 1 hour ago
Ferrari announce DRASTIC change as Verstappen issues dire warning to bosses - GPFans F1 Recap
- Today 00:27
Hamilton sends strong message over Gaza deaths
- Yesterday 22:57
F1 giants announce name change with IMMEDIATE effect
- Yesterday 21:57
Horner admits Red Bull at MAJOR disadvantage with new rules
- Yesterday 20:57
Horner reveals 'unhuman' Verstappen secret
- Yesterday 19:57
Related news
F1 driver hails 'INCREDIBLE' race return opportunity as track options assessed
French president gives HUGE update on historic F1 race
Rumours BUILD over French GP return to F1 calendar
F1 masterplan to secure ICONIC track's return takes tantalising new twist
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860