French GP | Verstappen pips Hamilton, claims pole
Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen put on a blinding display in Saturday’s qualifying to seize pole position ahead of title rival Lewis Hamilton.
The 23-year-old lapped the 5.8km long Paul Ricard circuit in one minute 29.990 seconds in his Red Bull, 0.258 clear of Mercedes’ Hamilton, who trails Verstappen by four points in the overall standings and will line up alongside him on the front row.
Bottas third
Valtteri Bottas, in the other Mercedes, was third while Sergio Perez, winner two weeks ago in Baku, was fourth for Red Bull.
Verstappen’s display, which made him the only driver to lap below the one minute, 30 second mark, earned the Dutchman his second pole of the season and fifth of his career.
It also ended the run of practice and qualifying dominance for Mercedes at this track. The reigning champion had led every practice and qualifying session for the two races the circuit has hosted since joining the calendar in 2018, with Hamilton winning both from pole.
Return to form
Nevertheless, it marked a welcome return to form for Mercedes after two poor weekends in Monaco and Baku.
