Formula 1: Charles Leclerc takes first career pole for 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix

Charles Leclerc took the first pole position of his Formula 1 career by taking the pole position for the 2019 season’s second race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, at Bahrain International Circuit.

Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took the first pole position of his Formula 1 career in just his second race driving for Ferrari, as he took the pole position for the 2019 season’s second race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, at Bahrain International Circuit to become the second youngest polesitter in Formula 1 history.

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel is the youngest polesitter in Formula 1 history, as he took the pole position for the 2008 Italian Grand Prix at the age of 21 years and 72 days old. Leclerc, meanwhile, is 21 years and 166 days old.

The 21-year-old Monegasque took the pole position for the 57-lap race around the 15-turn, 3.363-mile (5.412-kilometer) Bahrain International Circuit road course in Sakhir, Bahrain by recording a top lap time of 87.866 seconds (137.787 miles per hour), which is a new track record, in the third and final round of qualifying for the race.

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Vettel finished 0.294 seconds (0.459 miles per hour) behind his teammate to qualify in second place for the race by recording a top lap time of 88.160 seconds (137.328 miles per hour) in this round.

Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport teammates Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas qualified in third and fourth place, respectively, and are set to start the race on the second row. Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen and Rich Energy Haas’ Kevin Magnussen qualified in fifth and sixth, respectively, and are set to start on the third row.

McLaren’s Carlos Sainz Jr., Haas’ Romain Grosjean, Alfa Romeo Racing’s Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren rookie Lando Norris are set to round out the top 10 on the starting grid. These four drivers, the other four drivers who advanced to the third and final round of qualifying for the race, qualified in seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th place, respectively.

Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo, Scuderia Toro Rosso rookie Alexander Albon, Red Bull Racing’s Pierre Gasly, SportPesa Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat were eliminated following the second round of qualifying for the race and are set to start in 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th place, respectively.

Alfa Romeo Racing rookie Antonio Giovinazzi, Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg, Racing Point’s Lance Stroll and ROKiT Williams Racing teammates George Russell, a rookie, and Robert Kubica were eliminated following the first round of qualifying for the race and are set to start in 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th place, respectively.

Here are the full qualifying results for the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix at Bahrain International Circuit.

Qualifying Results
1st – Charles Leclerc
2nd – Sebastian Vettel
3rd – Lewis Hamilton
4th – Valtteri Bottas
5th – Max Verstappen
6th – Kevin Magnussen
7th – Carlos Sainz Jr.
8th – Romain Grosjean
9th – Kimi Raikkonen
10th – Lando Norris
11th – Daniel Ricciardo
12th – Alexander Albon
13th – Pierre Gasly
14th – Sergio Perez
15th – Daniil Kvyat
16th – Antonio Giovinazzi
17th – Nico Hulkenberg
18th – Lance Stroll
19th – George Russell
20th – Robert Kubica

ESPN2 is scheduled to air the live broadcast of the second race on the 2019 Formula 1 schedule, the Bahrain Grand Prix, from Bahrain International Circuit beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET tomorrow.