The end of bad luck for Charles Leclerc? Unable to start in Brazil, disqualified at the end of the United States Grand Prix, the Monegasque (26 years old) found a smile again during the night from Friday to Saturday on the Vegas circuit, returning to the calendar 41 years after his latest edition.
Brilliant in qualifying and best time in the three rounds, the Ferrari driver took pole position – the 23rd of his career – for the start of the race on Sunday morning (7 a.m. French time). However, he will not start on the front row alongside his teammate Carlos Sainz, but rather with Max Verstappen in his wheel.
Gasly: “It happened out of nowhere! »
The Red Bull driver, already assured of a third world champion title, took advantage of the Spaniard’s penalty. Second fastest in these qualifiers, Sainz paid dearly for the manhole cover incident in free practice and had to move back ten places on the starting grid (12th).
Among the great satisfactions in this already so maligned Grand Prix, the XXL race of Pierre Gasly, author of his best performance in qualifying this season. He snatched the 5th time and will start from the second row thanks to Sainz’s penalty. “It happened out of nowhere!” We thought it would be the most complicated circuit of the season,” one of the two French people from Alpine struggled to believe, speaking to Canal +.
Sunday’s race will be awaited at the turning point, the American event being the subject of all possible criticism for several days. Last Wednesday, Max Verstappen had already judged that this Grand Prix in the “City of Sins” was made up of “99% spectacle” and “1% sport”.
