French Grand Prix qualifying results: Confirmed grid after penalties – Hamilton on pole
LEWIS HAMILTON will start the French Grand Prix from pole position after dominating qualifying at Paul Ricard.
The Brit was a class above the rest of the field as Sebastian Vettel suffered a nightmare in his Ferrari, eventually finishing seventh.
Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas will line up second while Charles Leclerc posted a time good enough for third.
Max Verstappen was fourth for Red Bull while McLaren stars Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz locked out the third row in a brilliant Saturday performance.
Vettel had to abort one of his flying runs after a small mistake and was made to pay as the track conditions changed, with the German unable to post a time fast enough to challenge the Mercedes.
The German marque have topped every session at Paul Ricard so far this weekend, with reigning champion Hamilton duly notching a 1:28.319 to secure pole ahead of Bottas.
Strong winds prevented any rivals from overtaking the Brit on the final runs, meaning Mercedes comfortably secured their 63rd front-row lock-out.
At the other end of the field, Romain Grosjean had a frustrating session and was knocked out in Q1 while grid penalties for George Russell and Daniil Kvyat will see them line up at the back of the grid.
Russell has a 15-place penalty for changing his control electronics and energy store while Kvyat will be punished with a 25-place drop after Toro Rosso tactically broke the seal on a new turbocharge and MGU-H, despite not intending to change the parts until later in the season.
French Grand Prix qualifying results
20. Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso) – 1:31.564 *25-place penalty
19. George Russell (Williams) – 1:32.789 *15-place penalty
18. Robert Kubica (Williams) – 1.33.205
17. Lance Stroll (Racing Point) – 1:31.726
16. Romain Grosjean (Haas) – 1:31.626
15. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) – 1:31.440
14. Sergio Perez (Racing Point) – 1:30.738
13. Nico Hulkenberg (Renault) – 1:30.544
12. Kimi Raikkonen (Alfa Romeo) – 1:30.533
11. Alexander Albon (Toro Rosso) – 1:30.461
10. Antonio Giovanazzi (Alfa Romeo) – 1:33.420
9. Pierre Gasly (Red Bull) – 1:30.184
8. Daniel Ricciardo (Renault) – 1:29.918
7. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) – 1:29.799
6. Carlos Sainz (McLaren) – 1:29.522
5. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 1:29.418
4. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 1:29.409
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 1:29.015
2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) – 1:28.605
1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) – 1:28.319