Leclerc puzzled by pole position: 'Worst track for me'

19:01, 02 Aug

Updated: 22:28, 02 Aug

bySavannah Lenz

Charles Leclerc surprised the grid when he took pole position. After the session, he admitted he had struggled even more with his Ferrari before going P1.

After being asked about whether the changing weather conditions helped the Ferrari versus the McLaren, Leclerc said, "I don't drive the McLaren car, so it's difficult to comment, but for sure the car was a lot more difficult in Q3 than it was in Q2."

"I don't know if it's more difficult compared to the McLaren or easier. But for sure, we gained competitiveness not only towards the McLaren, but towards everybody in Q3."

Leclerc shocked by pole position

"Because when I finished the lap, I really thought that this was probably good enough for P3, just, but definitely not P1. So, it was a good surprise. However, it also felt worse for me from Q2 to Q3. It was just very tricky."

Leclerc was then asked about how this boosts Ferrari after such a tough season.

"It's a big boost. The team has been pushing like crazy to bring upgrades. Last weekend, the team brought an upgrade as well, and it helped us to go in the right direction."

Last weekend, Leclerc managed to end up in third place and onto the podium. Hamilton, who started from the pit lane, worked his way through the field and ended up in seventh.

Leclerc at the Hungarian Grand Prix

"We didn't know how much and as I said in Spa, we need to judge over a few races and not only one. But yes, to be able to be on pole position today is amazing, and it means that we are doing something right."

Throughout all three practice sessions, Leclerc came third to the McLarens. The fact that he was able to beat them for pole position is not lost on him, especially because he sees this as a bad track for him.

"Again, for many things I did not expect to be on pole, also because I was saying on Thursday, this is probably the worst track for me statistically over the season. I've always trailed. But this weekend, for some reason, I found some pace. So yeah, it's good."