If you’ve been waiting since 1990 to see a Ferrari on pole at the French GP at Paul Ricard, then you’re a happy fan because that’s exactly what Charles Leclerc did on Saturday with a little help from his teammate Carlos Sainz.
Carlos, who will start at the back of the grid on Sunday due to engine change penalty, assisted Charles by giving him a tow on the last run in Q3. This allowed Charles to take pole position ahead of Max Verstappen’s Red Bull with Max’s teammate, Sergio Perez, in third.
The grid looks like a good battle with Lewis Hamilton leading his fellow Brits, Lando Norris and George Russell, in 4th, 5th and 6h respectively. Any one of those drivers will be waiting for the slightest hint of trouble ahead of them to nab a podium position.
French GP Qualifying Results:
| Pos | Name | Car | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1m31.727s | 1m31.216s | 1m30.872s |
| 2 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1m31.891s | 1m31.99s | 1m31.176s |
| 3 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull | 1m32.354s | 1m32.12s | 1m31.335s |
| 4 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m33.041s | 1m32.274s | 1m31.765s |
| 5 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | 1m32.672s | 1m32.777s | 1m32.032s |
| 6 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1m33.109s | 1m32.633s | 1m32.131s |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso | Alpine-Renault | 1m32.819s | 1m32.631s | 1m32.552s |
| 8 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri-Red Bull | 1m33.394s | 1m32.836s | 1m32.78s |
| 9 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Ferrari | 1m32.297s | 1m31.081s | |
| 10 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas-Ferrari | 1m32.756s | 1m32.649s | |
| 11 | Daniel Ricciardo | McLaren-Mercedes | 1m33.404s | 1m32.922s | |
| 12 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine-Renault | 1m33.346s | 1m33.048s | |
| 13 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | 1m33.034s | 1m33.052s | |
| 14 | Sebastian Vettel | Aston Martin-Mercedes | 1m33.285s | 1m33.276s | |
| 15 | Alex Albon | Williams-Mercedes | 1m33.423s | 1m33.307s | |
| 16 | Pierre Gasly | AlphaTauri-Red Bull | 1m33.439s | ||
| 17 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin-Mercedes | 1m33.439s | ||
| 18 | Guanyu Zhou | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | 1m33.674s | ||
| 19 | Mick Schumacher | Haas-Ferrari | 1m33.701s | ||
| 20 | Nicholas Latifi | Williams-Mercedes | 1m33.794s |
Bummer for Schumacher and with Magnussen’s penalty a bummer for Haas. I’m hoping they stay cool and get thru the start and move up maybe getting some points.
Well that hope went away with too early a pit stop and a safety car.