Leclerc shocks Hungary with Ferrari's first pole of 2025

Charles Leclerc stunned the Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying session at the Hungaroring in Budapest by putting Ferrari on pole for the 2025 race, with Oscar Piastri second and Lando Norris third. Formula 1 said the top four cars in Q3 were covered by just 0.053 seconds, the closest top-10 in Formula 1 history, turning a routine qualifying hour into one of the tightest competitive snapshots the sport has seen.

For Ferrari, the result broke a long dry spell and mattered beyond one Saturday lap. Leclerc’s pole was the team’s first of the 2025 Formula 1 season, and it arrived at a circuit that often rewards precision, patience and clean air over raw straight-line speed. With Hungary the final race before Formula 1’s summer break, the front row and the first three places on the grid became an early read on which teams had real momentum heading into August.

McLaren still had reasons to believe it could control the weekend. Piastri and Norris locked out second and third, and both drivers were in the fight on pace even if Leclerc denied them pole. Piastri called the session “bizarre” and “frustrating,” a fair summary of how little separated the leaders once the track tightened up in Q3.

Red Bull left qualifying with more questions than answers. Max Verstappen struggled to eighth and said he had “no grip,” a blunt verdict that matched the picture in the paddock of a car fighting balance rather than finding speed. BBC Sport’s live text also noted that Lewis Hamilton was out in Q2, while Aston Martin showed pace in the lower reaches of the top 10, a sign that the order behind the front runners was just as unstable.

Hamilton’s weekend then deteriorated further. He qualified 12th and called himself “absolutely useless,” even suggesting Ferrari should replace him. That level of frustration from a seven-time world champion underlined how unforgiving the Hungaroring can be when a team misses the window on setup and tyre preparation.

The race itself did not preserve the qualifying surprise. Lando Norris won the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix after a late battle with Piastri, giving McLaren its 200th Formula 1 victory and reminding rivals that raw grid position alone was not enough to settle the title picture. Leclerc’s pole still stood as a sharp warning shot, though: at a track that rewards control, the margins at the front were narrow enough for Ferrari to matter again.