Leclerc stuns with pole in Hungary as Ferrari end long wait

Charles Leclerc delivered a sensational late lap to claim pole position for Ferrari at the Hungarian Grand Prix on Saturday, marking his first of the season and the team’s first in Budapest since 2017.

The Monegasque driver clocked 1:15.372 in tricky, windy conditions, edging McLaren’s Oscar Piastri by just 0.026 seconds. Piastri’s teammate Lando Norris was third, with George Russell of Mercedes just 0.053 seconds off the pace in fourth, rounding off a thrillingly tight session.

“I honestly have no words, it’s probably one of the best pole positions I’ve ever had because it’s the most unexpected for sure,” said Leclerc.

It was the 27-year-old’s 27th career pole and his first at the Hungaroring.

“The whole qualifying has been extremely difficult and when I say that I’m not exaggerating,” Leclerc added. “In Q3 the conditions changed… I knew I had to just do a clean lap to target third. At the end of the day it’s pole position and I definitely did not expect that.”

(Source: AFP)