Qualifying for tomorrow’s French Grand Prix was nothing sort of nail-biting entertainment as Red Bull and Mercedes battled in to the final seconds for a chance at pole.
The opposing teams will continue their close running for the points tomorrow, but as each weekend goes by, it’s looking likely that this fight for the title could go right to the end between Hamilton and Verstappen.
The Dutch driver, who landed his first pole since the season-opener in Bahrain – as well as Red Bull’s first French GP pole start – said the goal is to land the coveted 25 points at tomorrow’s race.
“So far it’s been a really positive weekend, on a track where it’s normally been a bit difficult for us,” says Verstappen.
“To get pole position feels really nice.
“It’s a great day. We have to finish it off tomorrow and try and get the 25 points we lost in Baku.”
It’s been a difficult few weeks for the silver arrows, but they certainly seem more confident at this weekend’s more traditional circuit than at the previous two street races.
They may be performing better this weekend, but it has yet to prove enough to hold Max Verstappen off their heels.
Speaking after Q3, Hamilton said; “It’s been a really, really hard weekend. Mentally, and just trying to get the car into a happy place.
“You wouldn’t believe how many changes I’ve made since Practice One, going round and round chasing our tails and ending up coming back to something similar to where we started.
“I’ve generally been unhappy in the car all weekend.
“Congratulations to Max, they’ve done an incredible job this weekend and they’re incredibly quick.
“They’ve got a new engine this weekend and they’re quick on the straight. We’re loving the battle.”
