F1 Hungarian GP qualifying LIVE: Verstappen fights Leclerc for pole as Hamilton struggles

Sebastian Vettel to retire from F1 at end of season

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Lewis Hamilton will be aiming to maintain his strong recent form with another decent showing in today’s qualifying session for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The 37-year-old has finished on the podium in each of his last four outings and will be desperate to give himself the best chance of another welcome haul of points by troubling the likes of Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc against the clock this afternoon.

It remains to be seen whether Mercedes will be able to challenge for a front-row start at the Hungaroring, though, with the Silver Arrows still adrift of Red Bull and Ferrari in terms of outright pace. They have not been able to join the battle for Constructors’ Championship glory as things stand but have made plenty of progress over the last few weeks and will be hoping to return to the top of the F1 pecking order in the not-too-distant future.

They struggled to get up to speed in FP3, with George Russell’s best lap only good enough for fifth place and Hamilton finishing all the way down in 11th at the end of a wet-dry session in Budapest. It seems as though pole position could be out of reach for Mercedes this weekend but it will be interesting to see whether the rain returns to throw a spanner in the works when qualifying gets underway.

Follow Express Sport‘s live updates below.

KEY EVENTS

  • Good afternoon14:30

    • Practice report

    Carlos Sainz drew first blood on Friday by setting the fastest lap in FP1, with his best time more than one-tenth quicker than that of Max Verstappen.

    Ferrari managed to stay at the front in FP2, with Charles Leclerc heading up the order in front of Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz.

    However, it was Nicholas Latifi who set the pace in this morning’s third practice session with a hugely impressive final lap as the track was drying out.

    The circuit appears to have recovered from the heavy rain that fell earlier today, but there are still a number of ominous-looking clouds hanging over Budapest ahead of qualifying…

    Good afternoon

    Hello and welcome to Express Sport‘s live coverage of today’s qualifying session at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

    Charles Leclerc has been the quickest Drivers’ Championship title contender over the course of the weekend so far and will be looking to secure yet another pole position by excelling against the clock this afternoon.

    He is likely to be firmly tested by Max Verstappen, though, with Red Bull set to challenge at the very top of the order between now and the end of Sunday’s race.

    Who will manage to secure a front-row grid start in Budapest? We’re just half an hour away from the start of Q1 and will be keeping you updated with the on-track action as it happens.

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