Leclerc beats Verstappen to pole in France

The Ferrari cars work together to ensure Leclerc starts at the front of the grid for the French Grand Prix

GP FRANCIA F1/2022 - VENERDI’ 22/07/2022 credit: @Scuderia Ferrari Press Office

Charles Leclerc will start the French Grand Prix from pole position after benefitting from a tow from his teammate at Le Castellet.

The Ferrrari driver followed teammate Carlos Sainz around the circuit to pick up a slipstream and outqualify title rival Max Verstappen, who starts alongside Leclerc on the front row.

Mick Schumacher thought he’d done enough to get through to Q2, but he was found to have breached track limits, so his fastest lap of the session was deleted.

Alex Albon struggled early on with a spin, but managed to get his Williams into the second part of qualifying, while his teammate was eliminated in Q1.

Sainz and Kevin Magnussen both made it through to Q3 despite knowing they’d be starting at the back of the grid due to engine penalties. Magnussen stayed in the garage through the top 10 shootout, while Sainz didn’t set a time despite heading out on track to help his teammate.

Lando Norris split the Mercedes drivers, while Fernando Alonso starts ahead of Yuki Tsunoda on the fourth row.

Provisional qualifying result:

1 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

3. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

4. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

5. Lando Norris (McLaren)

6. George Russell (Mercedes)

7. Fernando Alonso (Alpine)

8. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri)

9. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

10. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

11. Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)

12. Esteban Ocon (Alpine)

13. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo)

14. Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)

15. Alexander Albon (Williams)

16. Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri)

17. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)

18. Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo)

19. Mick Schumacher (Haas)

20. Nicholas Latifi (Williams)

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