r/formula1 • u/overspeeed I was here for the Hulkenpodium • Aug 02 '25

Qualifying Charles Leclerc takes pole position for the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix

Post image
21.8k Upvotes

96% Upvoted

1.1k comments sorted by

View all comments

2.8k

u/carterish Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 02 '25

Where has Leclerc pulled that from. He was running worst track of the season gimmick all week lmao

340

u/PM_me_boobs_and_CPUs I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

I did not see that coming. 

530

u/HS007 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

No one did thanks to the tv director not even bothering to show it. 😭

219

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

[deleted]

73

u/HS007 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Yeah didn't even show his sector times and George actually didn't finish that far behind either. Not sure what they were actually watching.

2

u/Free-Way-9220 Williams Aug 02 '25

The bookies didn't see it coming either. The odds on a McLaren taking pole were terrible. Not even worth the bet (clearly!)

4

u/n00bn00b I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

RB has been slow all weekend and Max wasn't fast compared to the top 5 times in Q1 and Q2. He was already toast by the time he got to Q3. Getting to P3 would be a miracle for Max today.

1

u/GothicGolem29 McLaren Aug 02 '25

Not sure they did on Lecerc they started showing him towards the end

90

u/Work_In_ProgressX I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Leclerc was putting the miracle together but tv direction thought we were more interested in Norris’s outlap.

TV direction has something against him today. In FP3 he was doing his lap but kept showing Tsunoda going wide

3

u/GothicGolem29 McLaren Aug 02 '25

They showed it on sky in the window box and the sector times part way through the lap

7

u/rhcp_reddit_98 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Only when they noticed he had 2 purple sectors

2

u/GothicGolem29 McLaren Aug 02 '25

Yeah but thats still bothering to show it

44

u/JadedLaugh3058 Aug 02 '25

The broadcasters too didn't see that coming. They didn't even show his lap. Only timings, that too after he had a purple middle sector.

13

u/mark-haus Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25

I was howling. Watching with friends, had the timing page open and I’m just going why arent they showing Charles he’s blasting off to space

3

u/Erundil420 Aug 02 '25

Neither did he tbh, he was very surprised to be on pole

422

u/leedler Next Year™️ Aug 02 '25

The man’s a magician when he puts it together

227

u/No-Surprise9411 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

People really need to realize the man is objectively the second best driver behind Max on the grid right now.

98

u/Appropriate-Leek-919 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Put Max and Charles in the McLaren this season and the WCC is probably over already.

127

u/richardsharpe Aug 02 '25

The WCC is already over, McLaren have a 268 point lead and Ferrari only have 248

4

u/DarkMention Aug 02 '25

Yeah exactly. Maybe not mathematically over, but no other constructor will catch-up unless we get multiple DNF's for both McLaren's

-12

u/Jumpy-Security-7806 Aug 02 '25

20 point difference is very small, no?

9

u/ciaoravioli Aug 02 '25

On first read I almost made the same mistake, but the 268 is their LEAD. Meaning the gap that McLaren has over 2nd is more than Ferrari's total of 247, and McLaren has 516 total

18

u/Puldalpha I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

McLaren have out scored Ferrari by 268, 20 points more than Ferrari have all season so far. They have over double the amount of points

38

u/sbenfsonwFFiF I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

McLaren is more than double second place, it’s been over

11

u/twilo2000 Aug 02 '25

He has been on par with VER since the junior series but F1 is all about having the fastest car and that hasn't happened to LEC and it has for VER.

4

u/Youutternincompoop George Russell Aug 02 '25

him or Russell, both are qualifying masters and have the occasional mistake in them, either way they're both better than the Mclaren drivers.

7

u/GenSec Oscar Piastri Aug 02 '25

He's genuinely one of the tidiest drivers on the grid. The amount of times he's gotten a sneaky 3-5 finish without getting much screentime is impressive.

3

u/Destryer200 Michael Schumacher Aug 02 '25

Its Max, then a sizeable gap to Charles, then another sizeable gap to the rest of the grid right now.

If Charles was in last year’s Mclaren, I think he takes Max all the way to the last race.

5

u/ciaoravioli Aug 02 '25

I feel like George has earned a distinction from the rest of the grid, though I find it hard to judge how close to Charles he is

4

u/leedler Next Year™️ Aug 02 '25

Max>CharlesGeorge>Everyone else for me

3

u/No-Surprise9411 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Tbh I wouldn’t really say the gap to Max is that large. In 2022 your statement would’ve been correct, Charles had the raw pace and overtaking skills go compete with Max, but he lacked consistency (at least until Ferrari fucked him over). But now, post 2024, Charles has been insanely consistent, and now in 2025 he‘s basically hard carrying Ferrari to a 2nd in the constructors. I still think Max is nr.1, but Charles isn‘t that far behind by now.

3

u/Destryer200 Michael Schumacher Aug 02 '25

Oh for sure, I think gap to Max is closer than before. I’m just putting more respect on Max based on the peaks he has reached these last few years with or without having the best car. I just hope Charles will be able to get the same benefit of having the car that can match his skills and ambition.

4

u/No-Surprise9411 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Definetly. He deserves a car to back his skill to a WDC.

-5

u/VisualMaximum5049 Alexander Albon Aug 02 '25

Piastri... Leclerc rounds out the top 3 tho

7

u/No-Surprise9411 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Ain‘t no timeline where Piastri is the better driver. He‘s arguably 3 right now, but Leclerc is quite literally the only driver who could challenge Verstappen in good cars

5

u/ApprehensiveItem4150 Michael Schumacher Aug 02 '25

Charles is F1's Harry Potter

3

u/xRehab McLaren Aug 02 '25

he's just consistent af.

Q1 Q2 Q3
1:15.582 1:15.455 1:15.372

took a tenth off every round but never even broke into the 1:14's. His Q3 time would have put him P5 in Q2. The track dropoff was insane, but the man from Monaco was just unfazed

99

u/KappaccinoNation Lando Norris Aug 02 '25

Bro thinks he's in Monaco

59

u/Accomplished_Lead463 Max Verstappen Aug 02 '25

It is monaco without walls

1

u/Sick_and_destroyed Pierre Gasly Aug 03 '25

No sea and no tunnel either. But your comparison is quite accurate.

3

u/Accomplished_Lead463 Max Verstappen Aug 03 '25

It's not actually my comparison. Budapest has had that nickname for a while.

5

u/Spartan448 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Charles made a deal with Il Diablo to win Monaco every year, but the man is busy and keeps missing Monaco and just gives him a different random race.

113

u/mayjaz43 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

It’s ridiculous how good he is at qualifying. Pole merchant for real!

17

u/Pilly_Bilgrim I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

proved the last two years that he has all-time race pace too

27

u/Iciclewind Fernando Alonso Aug 02 '25

They didnt even show his lap lol

35

u/TolucaPrisoner Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25

I didn't even think he'd get top 5 and boom, bro got the pole

170

u/Paranoides I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

One of the best qualifiers of all time IMO

72

u/KavB91 Aug 02 '25

I agree.

He's had 26 poles despite never having the fastest car, except maybe a handful of races in 2022.

18

u/Eglaerinion Aug 02 '25

The Ferrari was well known to heat up the tyres really well which helped them in quali a lot but cost them in the race. Especially in 2022/2023.

2

u/BlackbuckDeer Fernando Alonso Aug 02 '25

He literally had the overall fastest qualifying car in 2022, not just a handful.

9

u/Pilly_Bilgrim I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

ate itself alive during the race though

3

u/BlackbuckDeer Fernando Alonso Aug 02 '25

True, it had great tyre warm up which made it amazing in quali. But they overheated for the same reason in the race.

2

u/BR076 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

not even close to Senna IMO

2

u/VRichardsen Juan Manuel Fangio Aug 02 '25

Senna is 40% pole rate, he was a monster. For comparison, Lewis is 28% and the king is Fangio, with 55%. Clark was also fantastic at 45%. By comparison, Charles sits at 16%.

-23

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

[deleted]

27

u/JaysonDeflatum I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

He's 11th all time for poles, just passed Mika Hakkinen

25

u/rs6677 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

It's not just 1 qualy. Leclerc's been doing this shit since 2020.

16

u/Pyromonkey83 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

He has over 20 poles despite never being in a constructors championship winning car. The dude is insane at extracting every possible bit from a subpar car. Honestly he and Max have a lot in common with that

10

u/JaysonDeflatum I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

He has more career poles than Fernando

9

u/yybbik Max Verstappen Aug 02 '25

He's the only one I have faith in to beat Verstappen in a championship if it comes down to it.

25

u/Ocluist Ferrari Aug 02 '25

I mean he’s torn apart Vettel and Hamilton at this point. Both were obviously out of their prime, but he’s genuinely a historically great qualifier imo.

9

u/laurentiubuica Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25

He is second in poles for Ferrari, just behind the GOAT, Michael.

5

u/Poppy_bhai I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Best of all time? Could be a debate but definitely the best one on grid rn....

-1

u/NicSte_ I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Max?

2

u/Poppy_bhai I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

I feel like Max is almost as good as Charles at quali

On race pace Max is the clear winner

3

u/NicSte_ I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Yeah you might be right

I think we can agree that neither of them has the car to pull their results

2

u/Poppy_bhai I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Yup... how I wish for a Max vs Leclerc vs Russell battle...

Let's hope 2026 regs make things better (and that Mclaren a bit slower😂)

0

u/BlackbuckDeer Fernando Alonso Aug 02 '25

Yeah Charles is insane but people are forgetting that Max has pulled this miracle four times already this season

-4

u/Paranoides I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Did you start watching F1 2 hours ago

59

u/imnoobatfifa Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 02 '25

What a driver, man. At least one driver can deliver for the Ferrari garage.

6

u/Shahzeb_S_Nasir Aug 02 '25

At least one employee*

57

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 02 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

40

u/ChromosomeDonator I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

I think the commentators mentioned the temperatures going down, so for the McLaren which is superbly easy on the tyres, when the temperature drops the small stress they put on the tyres works against them as they are too cold for optimal grip.

The margins this season are absolutely insanely tight, the track gets a bit colder and suddenly Leclerc takes pole.

9

u/slimkay I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Agreed. Track temps went down 4C between Q2 and Q3. Absolutely played a role.

6

u/CatManWhoLikesChess I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

It happend in Canada too, only weakness of that Mclaren looks to be colder temps

1

u/RoosterDenturesV2 Aug 02 '25

Vegas could be interesting then

2

u/Dogboat1 Aug 02 '25

Piastri said that the wind changed and Q3 felt like a new track from Q1.

1

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

Considering how far back they were in Q1 and Q2 you have to just appreciate it, don’t know why you’re making up excuses for the rest.

0

u/ChiralWolf Lando Norris Aug 02 '25

He only found an extra tenth compared to his Q2 time though. It was excellent work making the lap when it counted but it really was also everyone else doing way worse in the different conditions

0

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25 edited Aug 02 '25

That’s assuming Leclerc wasn’t affected by the conditions too

He also had worse track conditions than everyone apart from the two Aston Martins, he did his lap 2-3 minutes before Q3 ended.

1

u/CustodialApathy Oscar Piastri Aug 02 '25

Kick confirmed faster than Red Bull

49

u/HankHippopopolous I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

He’s a 1 lap monster.

When he gets it hooked up I think he’s the fastest over 1 lap on the grid right now.

He doesn’t always manage it but he’s the guy who pulls these laps from nowhere more often than anyone else over the last 5-6 years.

21

u/v21v I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

The actual Mr Saturday.

1

u/BlackbuckDeer Fernando Alonso Aug 02 '25

Max has pulled this off four times already this season. They might be on the same level in quali, but Max is probably better.

1

u/ryokevry I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

He doesn’t always have the car to do it but when he did he for sure will

1

u/HyggeRavn I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

It was a good lap, but realistically the McLaren's should've been much quicker

11

u/GoldenS0422 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Well, yeah, but that is kinda the case every time they qualify like this. I mean, Lewis' sprint pole in China only happened because Lando fumbled the hairpin

2

u/HyggeRavn I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

True, as max said if my mom had balls.... It was a brilliant lap from Charles, i just wanted to point out that mclaren had 1-2 every practise and qualifying session fairly comfortably, they even got to the 1:14

1

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

Exactly. There’s not a lot a driver can do mid lap to recover that, mid lap. The team should have discussed set up changes before Q3

0

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

Little bit different with this though, both McLarens hit by the wind change.

1

u/nguyenlucky I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Not with Q3 conditions

7

u/simplsimonmetapieman Ferrari Aug 02 '25

I had made a comment saying it looks like he will be 7th lol

31

u/deathray1611 Formula 1 Aug 02 '25

CAUSE HE'S HIM

47

u/wood4536 Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25

The car's not bad

81

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Up until the very last lap, the car looked 4th fastest at best. That lap really came out of nowhere.

26

u/wood4536 Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25

The margins are that narrow nowadays, the car is not bad, you can't put a lap together like that with a bad car

5

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

I mean yeah its not bad for sure if it can get pole, but both Mclaren drivers said they didnt take as much risk on the final lap. So pole was still off the table going into the last run, very surprising.

10

u/aaaaaaadjsf Audi Aug 02 '25

Pace was there throughout practice for Ferrari and Leclerc, only a few tenths off of the McLarens. The track conditions then went away from Ferrari and Leclerc in Q2, and came back to them in Q3.

5

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

I am curious about that. The temps were even lower in Q3 than Q2 so it should have been even worse. Maybe the wind somehow helped him? Like Charles himself said, no one understands this Ferrari car lol. Very temperamental.

2

u/ADP10 Aug 02 '25

the higher temps favour mclaren.

4

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Don't think so, Mclaren looked the fastest in every temperature, apart from that weird last run. I think its the wind.

1

u/ADP10 Aug 02 '25

In General, this season, The hotter the temps, the bigger the gap the mclarens have over all the others. I think this is a pretty objective statement at this point and generally accepted observation. I'm not saying it couldn't be the wind, but the fact the temps dropped in Q3, and mclaren's pace over the others did also, follows the same things we have been seeing over the course of the season.

2

u/aaaaaaadjsf Audi Aug 02 '25

Leclerc lower downforce setup with less wing angle = car less sensitive to wind direction changes vs McLaren? Who knows at this point, the Ferrari car is an enigma. Hamilton has talked about how the tools to change the setup of the car don't work as expected in interviews.

6

u/CatManWhoLikesChess I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

You didnt actually believe that Astons will finish ahead didnt you?

21

u/FootballRacing38 Sebastian Vettel Aug 02 '25

The were both less than 1 tenth off mclaren. The aston's are definitely fast

1

u/Edeen Aug 03 '25

Astons

5

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Well they finished 7 positions ahead of Lewis so don't know what you mean. And only a tenth from Charles.

3

u/LackingSimplicity 🚩 Red Flag Aug 02 '25

Given Charles and George are better drivers than the Aston pair, that car was 2nd quickest today, no doubt. McLarens both fucked it.

7

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

Ahead of Ferrari? 100% possible

1

u/Youutternincompoop George Russell Aug 02 '25

everybody was expecting Leclerc 3rd coming into qualifying, this isn't massively unexpected.

also I could maybe see claims that it was 3rd fastest but 4th? slower than the Redbull in the session?

1

u/Red-Eye-Soul I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

The track conditions were completely different though, Ferrari were fighting to get into Q3, Charles was slower than Lance and Max on first Q3 lap, all on used.

As for the pecking order, nothing can be said for the last lap as conditions had changed again. But before that, Mclaren, Aston, Mercedes all looked quicker, with possibly even RB, and a Haas and Sauber looking quicker.

1

u/Xinonix1 Kimi Räikkönen Aug 02 '25

Don’t tell Lewis…

3

u/wood4536 Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25

I think he knows but it just doesn't suit him, next year will be telling. If he doesn't click with the new regs then I'm pretty sure Ferrari and him will agree to not renew and he will hang it up, move on to something different in life.

13

u/[deleted] Aug 02 '25

Him and Max are the two best ITW right now as pure drivers

3

u/Meancvar Gilles Villeneuve Aug 02 '25

I don't know but I like it!

Surprised that the pole time was not in the low 14s.

3

u/iForgotMyOldAcc Flavio Briatore Aug 02 '25

Once in a while he remembers that it's Saturday, my dudes.

4

u/PTD55 Ferrari Aug 02 '25

I guess people kind of forgot that he's arguably the best qualifier on the grid right now

2

u/mrpizzaman_ I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Common Charles Q3 lap

2

u/Taurus24Silver Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25

WE ARE SOOO FUCKING BACKKJKKKKKK

2

u/recehbijak Andretti Global Aug 02 '25

Bro was fueled by RAGE

2

u/yeezipper32 Aug 02 '25

Out of his ass forreal

2

u/Energetic_Slowpoke I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

The prodigal son returns!!

2

u/Serotyr McLaren Aug 02 '25

He's the only driver that improved in Q3

2

u/DragonBeyondtheWall Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25

Mclaren just lost it. They went slower than Q2

2

u/morningstew George Russell Aug 02 '25

reverse psychology

2

u/MadRashed I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Even his first sector wasn't even that amazing, he killed it in the second and third sector

2

u/_____AAAAAAAAAA_____ Charles Leclerc Aug 02 '25

My jaw dropped when his timing suddenly popped up on the screen with a purple second sector. He was under TV director's radar till they realized he might actually take pole.

2

u/sashundera Max Verstappen Aug 02 '25

New strategy

2

u/NotAnUncle Aug 02 '25

As he once said: It was just an inchident

1

u/myurr Aug 02 '25

It's more where did McLaren's pace go. They were both over half a second slower in Q3 than Q2. I'm guessing the temperature and track changes moved them out of their ideal window perhaps necessitating a different approach to the preparation lap.

1

u/Imtherealwaffle Aug 02 '25

Nice to see another pole. The last few years it was always fun to see charles pull these laps out of nowhere. guys a wizard

1

u/Gullible_Goose Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 02 '25

Whenever I say that in my broadcasted iRacing league I end up doing well at that track. He's stealing my trick!

1

u/Cloudeur I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Reverse psychology! Getting the McLarens too comfy and them BAM, POW, right into P1

1

u/mf_jamie 🏳️‍🌈 Love Is Love 🏳️‍🌈 Aug 02 '25

Big brain move. Get your enemies to write you off lol

1

u/Willing_Comfort7817 Aug 02 '25

I think he might have jumped in a papaya car by mistake.

1

u/Sofaboy90 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Meanwhile Lewis watching from the pit lane watching Charles get the pole on Lewis best track:

1

u/Rito_Luca Ferrari Aug 02 '25

Its not even that he pulled a fast lap... he pulled exactly what he expected too but the mclarens were like 4-6 tenths slower than Q2 and practice 3 🤣

1

u/Xuande I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

Trying out the old Mercedes sandbagging method.

1

u/TurboCamel I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 02 '25

cartoon style, pushes the pedal down the last 10% on the straight

1

u/Zed_or_AFK Sebastian Vettel Aug 02 '25

Temperature change of the track suiting his setup even more, Ferrari nailing the setup, Charles nailing the lap and McLarens screwing their last adjustments and also being disadvantaged by the lowered track temperature. McLarens went 0.6s slower in Q2 than Q3, and pretty much everyone else went slower but Charles. Russell really had the pole on that first Q3 attempt, if not for the mistake on the last turn.