French GP: Charles Leclerc credits Carlos Sainz after sealing pole at Paul Ricard

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc credited Carlos Sainz for the tow he provided in the closing stages of Q3 to help him earn pole position ahead of the Red Bulls in France.

The French Grand Prix takes place later this afternoon and Leclerc will start the race from P1 ahead of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, with Carlos Sainz set to launch from the back row after receiving multiple grid penalties for a number of component changes in his power unit.

That all stems from his fiery exit from the Austrian Grand Prix, of course, and in a fine act of teamsmanship, Sainz got himself into Q3 and then helped Leclerc with a tow around the Circuit Paul Ricard which allowed the Monegasque to take pole ahead of Verstappen.

That said, Leclerc was quick to thank Sainz post-session, with him saying:

“Leading up to this afternoon, it had been quite a difficult weekend for me. I struggled with the balance and knew that in this kind of heat, you pay the price for the smallest mistake because your tyres overheat. 

“Today, I felt good building up to that last lap in Q3. Carlos gave me a nice tow, which helped me to have a bigger margin and seal pole position. It was a good qualifying with great teamwork behind it.                                                                                     

“Our competitors are extremely strong here. It seems that they have an advantage in terms of race pace, but I’m confident we can turn it around and hopefully we will keep that first place tomorrow.”

Ferrari worked well together to take pole but it remains to be seen what they can do today to try and achieve a positive result for both cars this afternoon.

Leclerc has every chance of a race win but has two Red Bull cars buzzing around him, whilst Sainz