Formula 1: Charles Leclerc takes pole for 2019 Austrian Grand Prix
By Asher Fair
Charles Leclerc took his second career Formula 1 pole position and his second pole position of the 2019 season for the season’s ninth race, the Austrian Grand Prix, at the Red Bull Ring.
Scuderia Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc took his second pole position of the 21-race 2019 Formula 1 season and the second pole position of his Formula 1 career for the season’s ninth race, the Austrian Grand Prix, at the Red Bull Racing.
Leclerc took the pole position for this 71-lap race around the 10-turn, 2.683-mile (4.318-kilometer) Red Bull Ring road course in Spielberg, Styria, Austria by recording a new track record lap time of 63.003 seconds (153.307 miles per hour) in the third and final round of qualifying for the race.
Leclerc’s first career pole position came for the 2019 season’s second race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, at Bahrain International Circuit back in late March. He dominated this race, only to have a late engine issue rob him of a victory and relegate him to third place.
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Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport’s Lewis Hamilton qualified in second place, but he is under investigation for an incident in the second round of qualifying involving him impeding the progress of Alfa Romeo Racing’s Kimi Raikkonen.
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas and Rich Energy Haas’ Kevin Magnussen rounded out the top five by qualifying in third, fourth and fifth place, respectively.
McLaren rookie Lando Norris, Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo Racing rookie Antonio Giovinazzi, Red Bull Racing’s Pierre Gasly and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel were the other five drivers who advanced to the third and final round of qualifying for this race.
Norris, Raikkonen, Giovinazzi and Gasly qualified in sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth place respectively, but Vettel did not participate in this round of qualifying as a result of a mechanical issue and this qualified in 10th.
Haas’ Romain Grosjean, Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg, Scuderia Toro Rosso rookie Alexander Albon, Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren’s Carlos Sainz Jr. were eliminated following the second round of qualifying for the race after qualifying in 11th, 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th place, respectively.
SportPesa Racing Point teammates Sergio Perez and Lance Stroll, Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat and ROKiT Williams Racing teammates George Russell, a rookie, and Robert Kubica were eliminated following the first round of qualifying for the race after qualifying in 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th place, respectively.
Here are the full qualifying results for the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring.
Qualifying Results
1st – Charles Leclerc
2nd – Lewis Hamilton
3rd – Max Verstappen
4th – Valtteri Bottas
5th – Kevin Magnussen
6th – Lando Norris
7th – Kimi Raikkonen
8th – Antonio Giovinazzi
9th – Pierre Gasly
10th – Sebastian Vettel
11th – Romain Grosjean
12th – Nico Hulkenberg
13th – Alexander Albon
14th – Daniel Ricciardo
15th – Carlos Sainz Jr.
16th – Sergio Perez
17th – Lance Stroll
18th – Daniil Kvyat
19th – George Russell
20th – Robert Kubica
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The live broadcast of the 2019 Formula 1 season’s ninth race, the Austrian Grand Prix, is scheduled to begin tomorrow morning at 9:10 a.m. ET on ESPN2 from the Red Bull Ring.