
Leclerc takes stunning pole as Ferrari ace qualifying strategy
F1 News
Leclerc takes stunning pole as Ferrari ace qualifying strategy

Charles Leclerc will start on pole for the French Grand Prix after Ferrari aced its qualifying strategy.
Max Verstappen will start second ahead of Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez after finishing three-tenths down on Leclerc's benchmark of a one minute, 30.872secs.
Carlos Sainz had set a daunting marker for Red Bull to attack in Q2, finishing nine-tenths up on Verstappen's time.
The Spaniard was then deployed as a slipstream creator for Leclerc as Ferrari attempted to fend from the Red Bull's superior straight-line speed down the double-dose of the Mistral Straight.
Mercedes survived a scare in Q2 before Lewis Hamilton secured fourth on the grid ahead of Lando Norris, who utilised his updated McLaren.
Norris escaped a penalty for alleged impeding in FP3, making his qualifying session even sweeter.
George Russell qualified sixth ahead of Fernando Alonso, who continued his fine form with seventh for Alpine, and Yuki Tsunoda in the AlphaTauri.
Sainz and Kevin Magnussen failed to set a time in the final session with their overhanging engine penalties sending them to the back of the grid.
Ricciardo knocked out in hectic Q2
McLaren had looked improved in free practice and Q1 with a raft of upgrades made to the MCL36 but whilst Norris made it through to Q3, Daniel Ricciardo fell out in the second session.
The positive is that the margin between the team-mates was only one-and-a-half tenths but that was the difference between ninth and 11th in Q2.
Esteban Ocon couldn't reach the shootout in his home race but will start 10th when penalties are applied, with Valtteri Bottas next up for Alfa Romeo.
Sebastian Vettel could finish only 14th, although the German was hampered by a lack of FP3 running earlier in the day. Alex Albon completed the eliminated drivers.
Schumacher and Haas dispute track limit ruling
The high track temperatures bit on the final lap of Q1 as Zhou Guanyu avoided a crash after losing the rear-end at turn six, whilst Albon rotated at the turn eight-nine chicane.
The spin for the Williams driver hampered those behind him, though Mick Schumacher and Vettel found time on their laps.
Pierre Gasly was eliminated at his home race but will start 14th with the penalties to Magnussen and Sainz, with Lance Stroll behind - who complained of traffic in the final sector.
Zhou unsurprisingly failed to improve after his moment whilst Schumacher had his time deleted for exceeding track limits, leaving him 17th on the grid and triggering confusion over team radio.
Haas believed Schumacher's lap was fair and prepared to run in Q2 but to no avail as his car had crossed the inside white line at the turn three apex.
Nicholas Latifi was slowest in the second Williams.
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F1 Standings

Drivers
- 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
- Nyck De Vries
- Liam Lawson
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
-
Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2023
-
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2023
-
Grand Prix of Australia 2023
-
Grand Prix of China 2023
-
Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2023
-
Miami Grand Prix 2023
-
Qatar Airways Gran Premio Del Made In Italy E Dell'emilia Romagna 2023
-
Grand Prix of Monaco 2023
-
AWS Gran Premio de España 2023
-
Grand Prix du Canada 2023
-
Grand Prix of Austria 2023
-
Aramco Grand Prix of Great Britain 2023
-
Grand Prix of Hungary 2023
-
Grand Prix of Belgium 2023
-
Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2023
-
Grand Prix of Italy 2023
-
Grand Prix of Singapore 2023
-
Grand Prix of Japan 2023
-
Qatar Grand Prix 2023
-
Grand Prix of the United States 2023
-
Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2023
-
Rolex Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2023
-
Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023
-
Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2023
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