Leclerc surprised at Ferrari strength in French GP qualifying

The Monegasque driver had looked set to be forced to play second fiddle to main rival Red Bull after Max Verstappen had looked super strong in final free practice.

But Leclerc’s Ferrari came alive in the later qualifying session as, thanks to a bit of assistance in getting a tow off teammate Carlos Sainz, he took his seventh pole position of the season.

“After Q1, I think I was very surprised by the pace we had,” he said “I mean, also in Q2, we were very strong. So…