Charles Leclerc picked up a surprise pole in the Hungarian GP qualifying. The Ferrari looked the second fastest team this weekend, but they were struggling to get into Q3. However, fortunes changed in the final lap in quali, and Leclerc grabbed an impressive pole.

The McLarens were dominant throughout the weekend, but they just didn’t have the pace in the final part of qualifying. Their drivers, Piastri and Norris, will start 2^nd and 3^rd in the race tomorrow. They were followed by Russell in the qualifying session. Let’s look at the key takeaways of the Hungary GP Qualifying.

Ferrari on Pole in Hungary

Charles Leclerc grabbed his 27^th career pole after posting an impressive lap in qualifying. The Monegasque driver was quick throughout the weekend, but nobody expected him to be on pole ahead of the McLarens. This was the first time in qualifying this season where somebody other than the McLarens or Verstappen was on pole. This could be a strong statement from Ferrari, which brought in upgrades last week in the Belgian GP.

One Ferrari is on pole, while the other struggled to get out of Q2. Lewis Hamilton has had an up-and-down start to life at Ferrari. After winning the Chinese GP Sprint, he has completely fallen off.

Aston Martin Resurgence in Hungary GP Qualifying

Aston Martin has had a poor 2025 season, struggling to get into Q3 and scoring many points. In last weekend’s Belgian GP Qualifying, both cars qualified on the last row of the grid. However, their fortunes have turned this time around. The cars looked quite impressive and qualified 5^th and 6^th in the session. Fernando Alonso, at one time, was just shy of taking pole, just before the others put in their laps.

Red Bull Struggles in the Hungarian Qualifying

Max Verstappen has completely dragged the Red Bull by its teeth this year. However, in the Hungaroring, he couldn’t do anything with the car. With other cars improving drastically in the final run of qualifying, Verstappen didn’t have the pace to get in the top 5 spots. The surprising part was that he was even outqualified by Bortoleto in the Kick Sauber.

Tentative Starting Grid for 2025 Hungarian GP

1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
3. Lando Norris (McLaren)  
4. George Russell (Mercedes)
5. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
6. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
7. Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)
8. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
9. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
10. Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)
11. Oliver Bearman (Haas)
12. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
13. Carlos Sainz (Williams)
14. Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
15. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
16. Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)
17. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
18. Esteban Ocon (Haas)
19. Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
20. Alex Albon (Williams)