Charles Leclerc secured a stunning pole position for Ferrari at the Hungarian Grand Prix, unexpectedly topping the timesheets ahead of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. This marks a significant turnaround for Ferrari, which had shown inconsistent pace throughout qualifying.
Why it matters
Leclerc's unexpected pole position puts Ferrari in a strong starting position for Sunday's race, potentially disrupting the usual front-runners. It also highlights the unpredictable nature of qualifying sessions, especially when track conditions change suddenly.
The details
- Leclerc's fastest lap in Q3 was a 1:15.372, narrowly beating championship leader Oscar Piastri by just 0.026 seconds.
- Piastri's McLaren teammate, Lando Norris, secured third place, a mere 0.015 seconds behind Piastri.
- Notably, Norris had set the quickest time in Q2 with a 1:14.980 but couldn't replicate that pace in Q3 as the sky clouded over, wind speeds increased, and track temperatures dropped, impacting overall grip.
What he said
Leclerc expressed his profound surprise at the result. "Today I don't understand anything in Formula 1," he stated. "Honestly, the whole qualifying has been extremely difficult. It was difficult for us to get to Q2, it was difficult for us to get to Q3... I knew I just had to do a clean lap to target third and at the end of the day it's pole position. I definitely did not expect that." He added, "Honestly, I have no words. It's probably one of the best pole positions I've ever had. It's the most unexpected, for sure."
