Mercedes expected to get back in shape in Paul Ricard after two hot weekends on the streets of Monte Carlo and Baku, but a great lap from Max Verstappen in qualifying earned Red Bull its first pole position in France.
It is the first time Red Bull has led a qualifying since the Bahrain Grand Prix season opener, and its strong performance was a significant one that suggests it could have the best overall package in 2021.
Mercedes has dominated the French GP venue since its return to the calendar three years ago, with Paul Ricard’s mix of medium and high speed corners traditionally being a combination that suits the Mercedes car.
But Red Bull has maintained its lead over Mercedes in France, an advantage underscored by Verstappen’s comfortable 0.258 second buffer over main title rival Lewis Hamilton in qualifying.
On the subject of matching items
“That certainly gives us more confidence,” said Red Bull team boss Christian Horner to Sky Sports.
“I mean, let’s see how things go tomorrow, but this track has been such a stronghold for Mercedes over the past few years. If we can beat them here, then we can beat them anywhere. “
Red Bull has arguably had the fastest car over a lap this season, but for one reason or another it doesn’t always come out on top.
On the subject of matching items
A mistake in Q3 cost Verstappen pole position at Imola, while the Dutchman’s fastest lap was canceled due to track limits in Portugal. In Spain, Hamilton needed a special lap to sink Verstappen to his 100th career pole by just 0.036 seconds.
Verstappen could have been on pole in Monaco and Baku if two red flags with an unfortunate time had not forced him to abandon his lap – both of which were on Charles Leclerc’s benchmark.
The general consensus in France was that Mercedes would strike back to regain dominance in the 2021 title fight, but Verstappen put in a surprisingly dominant performance to deny the Black Arrows their third straight pole at Paul Ricard.
“Traditionally this was not a great track for us, but we are of course really happy to be able to take pole position here,” said Verstappen.
“I knew it was going to be better than the last time we were here, but so good? I did not expect [that].
“Well, of course this is very promising for us and we just have to keep pushing, trying to do better.”
After qualifying, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted that his team is simply not fast enough when it comes to one lap.
“[It’s been] a difficult weekend because we just don’t have the pace, that’s the truth, ”he told Sky Sports F1.
“We just have to win everywhere. There’s no part that we don’t look at to improve our game. “
After Hamilton had clearly missed pole in the third quarter despite an impressive race to catch up, Hamilton’s voice sounded resignation over Red Bull’s advantage when he said on team radio: “That was a good lap. Still more than two tenths? “
In the end, the seven-time world champion was happy to sit in the front row next to his title rival and to have got the best out of his car.
“It’s a lot bigger than we’d hoped,” said Hamilton of the gap to Verstappen. “You have been so quick in the past races.
“We’re pushing and doing everything we can, but I think they just have a strong package right now. But we’re close. “
Mercedes continues to struggle to get its tires into the optimal operating window, which seems more natural for Verstappen in his Red Bull.
This has underlined the whole weekend so far with Verstappen’s ability to set competitive lap times straight out of the pits, as he did in Monaco and Baku.
Other factors have also contributed to Red Bull’s pace advantage. Mercedes lost a lot of time in the corners, while Verstappen was supported on the straights by Paul Ricard with a rear wing configuration with low downforce.
In addition, Red Bull has taken over Honda’s new engine for this weekend, with the Japanese manufacturer continuing to close the gap to Mercedes in the engine department over the winter.
While Mercedes seems to be focusing its development on revolutionizing the rules of 2022, Red Bull is still bringing new updates to its 2021 car to win its first world title since 2013.
“Of course there is a lot at stake, but the whole team is working incredibly well and has long hours,” said Horner.
“It’s difficult this year because you have the current car, you have the car for next year, you have the cost cap and everything else that happens except as a unit to see the whole team come together like that it is and is composed This pressure on Mercedes is phenomenal. “
This year, Mercedes tended to be stronger than Red Bull on conventional tracks at racing speed, which opens the prospect of a fascinating, epic duel on Sunday.
Should Red Bull continue to implement this form in upcoming races on similar “normal” tracks, this could determine the world championship.
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