- Race begins at 4.10pm BST
- Charles Leclerc starts on pole for Ferrari ahead of team-mate Sebastian Vettel
- Lewis Hamilton lines up third, alongside championship leader Valtteri Bottas in fourth
- Qualifying report: Charles Leclerc leads Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton to claim Bahrain pole
- Weather update: it’s windy
What Charles Leclerc said after qualifying
“This first pole position brings me a lot of emotions, even if I’m trying to stay as cool as possible, as there are no points for pole position and the race is tomorrow. It has been a great day and a great weekend overall for the team so far, so I hope it will continue tomorrow. I said it was a question of putting everything together for qualifying and it seems I did it, unlike what happened in the first race. It’s an amazing feeling but now we have to focus on the race and try to bring home the best possible result tomorrow. I feel more comfortable in the car lap after lap so I’m satisfied. Before the race we will talk with the team to find the perfect strategy in order to give the Scuderia the best possible result. The start will probably be the key as the track is dirty and it’s easy to have wheelspin.”
Welcome to our coverage for the 2019 Bahrain Grand Prix. Well, the Ferrari everyone thought would show up in Melbourne finally showed up in Bahrain yesterday. Charles Leclerc outclassed his Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel (and both Mercedes drivers) to take his maiden pole position in only his second race for Ferrari.
There is just over 90 minutes until the lights go out (and the floodlights around the Sakhir circuit go on…) and I’ll be here with you for the duration with all the build-up, latest updates and reaction. Last year’s Bahrain GP was a thriller and yesterday’s qualifying session has left us with a lot of questions. Let’s hope we get some answers in the next few hours.
Can Charles Leclerc convert his maiden pole into a maiden victory? Will Mercedes bounce back? Can anyone from outside the top three teams sneak onto the podium?!
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