Even when he trembles slightly, Max Verstappen ends up having the last word. On Saturday, during qualifying, the Red Bull driver waited until Q3 to dominate his rivals, first and foremost Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, who were not far from being favorites after their good performances in free practice.
But the three-time world champion, who has appeared in difficulty since the start of the weekend, has for the moment managed to always find that little something extra at the most opportune moment. And in Q3, it was on his first attempt that he managed to place himself in front of the Ferraris, with a time of 1’16″048, three tenths less than Sainz and four tenths less than Leclerc.
During the second fast lap, Verstappen even found a few more hundredths to go under the 1’16 mark (1’15″915). The Spaniard could not follow, even if he improved his own mark ( 1’16″185). As for Leclerc, a small mistake in turn 12 deprived him of the final fight and he abandoned his lap. It’s even Sergio Perez (Red Bull) who finds himself in 3rd place, and Lando Norris (McLaren) in 4th, the Monegasque will “only” start 5th.
The Dutchman therefore signs a third consecutive pole this season, after Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and the 35th of his career. The Ferrari drivers must now cling to the hope of having a better pace in the race to deprive him of a 57th victory on Sunday.
Ocon in Q2, a first this season for Alpine
Behind, if Yuki Tsunoda (Racing Bulls) pleasantly surprised with his passage into Q3 and 8th place (his teammate Daniel Ricciardo is far behind, 18th), the Mercedes relatively disappointed, with the 7th time in Q3 for George Russell and especially a Lewis Hamilton eliminated from Q2, who will find himself 11th on the grid. At Alpine, there were finally a few smiles, since Esteban Ocon managed to qualify in Q2, a first this season. He will start 15th but this performance sounded like a small victory in the French clan. His teammate Pierre Gasly was less successful with 17th place.
