Leclerc hopes to hold off Verstappen: 'Hopefully we win the race'

Charles Leclerc will start from pole position for the French Grand Prix on Sunday. The hot temperatures on the track will have a big impact on tyre management, but the Monegasque will be hoping his team can keep it under control.

Leclerc does not have an easy race ahead of him. With Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez on P2 and P3, the Ferrari driver will have to defend hard in the opening laps of the race. Carlos Sainz will start at the back of the field after multiple grid penalties, so Leclerc will be on his own at the start.

"It’s going to be very warm, but we are going to try everything to manage the tyres and hopefully win the race", Leclerc says during the driver parade before the race. At the Austrian Grand Prix, Ferrari appeared to have tyre degradation well under control, while things were less smooth at Red Bull.

Ferrari and Red Bull choose different set-up

Whether this will be the case again at Paul Ricard remains to be seen. Ferrari have chosen a set-up with more downforce, making them faster in the corners. However, this can have a negative influence on the degradation of the tyres. Red Bull, on the other hand, has opted for less downforce, making the RB18 incredibly fast on the straights.