Leclerc secures pole position in Azerbaijan, ending Red Bull’s supremacy while Mercedes face difficulties

Charles Leclerc has secured the pole position for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, beating Max Verstappen by 0.188 seconds in qualifying. The Ferrari driver and his Red Bull rival set identical times in their Q3 laps, but Leclerc returned for a final run to clinch the top spot. Sergio Perez came in third, followed by Leclerc’s teammate Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton in fifth, almost a second off the pace. Formula One has introduced two qualifying sessions for the weekend, with Friday’s result deciding the order for Sunday’s Grand Prix and Saturday’s session determining the starting grid for a 17-lap dash later the same day. Leclerc’s pole position is the first non-Red Bull pole of a season that has been dominated by the world champions.