Hungarian GP: Leclerc takes pole ahead of the McLarens

"Chiaroscuro"—there's no better adjective to describe Ferrari this season. On one side, there's a Monegasque, Charles Leclerc , who's working wonders. On the other, a Briton, Lewis Hamilton , who's having a tough time and crashed out in Q2, even announcing that "Ferrari should change drivers."

In Hungary it seemed like the prelude to a nightmare qualifying for Maranello, but in reality the number 16 pulled the hat out of the hat, with a second and third sector worthy of applause, finishing in 1'15"372 . " What? Mamma mia! ", he said at the end of the session, he didn't even believe it himself, and instead he took one of the best pole positions of his career (the 27th), when he wasn't even considered the favourite in the slightest .

Credit goes to a driver who's making almost no mistakes this season, and who's secured a top spot on a track where this grid position matters. He nearly crashed out in Q1 and Q2, but he always escaped, then he pulled off the shock : "I don't understand anything," he said. "All the stints were extremely difficult. From Q2 to Q3, the conditions changed, everything was more complicated. I had to do a clean lap, and I did it. When it started raining in Q2, I hoped it wouldn't stay. In the end, we're on pole, I'm speechless. One of the best I've ever done, and I'll do everything I can to maintain first place in the race."

Charles managed to work his magic, placing Russell's Mercedes—boosted by the lower track temperatures (4th, 53 thousandths behind)—behind the two McLarens, and the surprising Aston Martins , who have been brilliant this weekend thanks to the introduction of a more loaded front wing (Alonso 5th and Stroll 6th, a tenth behind). Piastri and Norris will start 2nd and 3rd, 26 and 41 thousandths behind . The Australian blames the wind: "It turned 180 degrees during the session, but I'm not making excuses." They are incredibly vulnerable on a high-downforce track that perfectly suits the characteristics of the papaya car. A surprise, like the two Racing Bulls of Lawson and Hadjar (9th and 10th) and Gabriel Bortoleto's 7th place in the Sauber. In the middle, a Max Verstappen who couldn't have done more (8th) , after never having found the right setup during the weekend and having complained between Friday and Saturday of "driving on ice".

Max struggled, as did Hamilton (12th) and Andrea Kimi Antonelli (15th) . The situation from Spa hasn't changed for either of them. A shame because the British driver from Stevenage had looked lively in the Ardennes race, after exiting in Q3 in qualifying. At the Hungaroring, his home race (9 career poles), he did so in Q2, after lapping halfway through a stint to get into the top 10 but falling just 15 thousandths short of 10th place. "Every time, every time," said a very disgruntled Lewis, who was extremely disappointed to see Leclerc finish on pole (a blow to his ambitions) . Three places behind is the 18-year-old from Bologna, who had tears in his eyes on Saturday in Belgium and was paying for a mistake in his last attempt at Q2 in Hungary (oversteer at turn 13). In short, a qualifying session full of twists and turns .