Hungarian GP: Max Verstappen and Lando Norris left disappointed after Lewis Hamilton takes pole
Lewis Hamilton narrowly beat Max Verstappen and Lando Norris to pole in Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday; watch the Hungarian GP live on Sky Sports F1 on Sunday, lights out is at 2pm; F1 Juniors will be live on Sky Showcase and Sky Sports Mix from 1.30pm
Sunday 23 July 2023 08:32, UK
Max Verstappen admitted he was surprised to be beaten to pole position by Lewis Hamilton at the Hungarian Grand Prix after Red Bull's upgraded car delivered a "terrible" display.
The Dutchman's streak of five successive poles was ended by just three thousandths of a second as Hamilton produced a brilliant lap to top Qualifying for the first time since December 2021.
Hamilton's success was all the more surprising given Red Bull had brought a significant package of upgrades to Hungary for their RB19, which has been completely dominant in winning all 10 races so far this season.
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Asked how his car had felt on Saturday, Verstappen replied: "Terrible. It doesn't matter where you are on the grid, if it doesn't feel good, it doesn't feel good.
"The whole Qualifying I've been struggling a lot, well the whole weekend really, with the shift and balance.
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"There's not much you can do really once you go into Qualifying, every time I got to the apex of the corner it was just not gripping up for me, and that's probably the worst balance I can have in the car.
"I tried to correct a few things in Q3, but there's only so much you can do. I thought my first lap wasn't too bad but it still felt like I was driving on ice."
Verstappen, who is 99 points clear of team-mate Sergio Perez at the top of the drivers' standings, remains favourite to extend his run of six successive Grand Prix wins on Sunday, but was visibly frustrated at his team's failure to maintain their recent perfect form.
"I think with the upgrades we brought as well to this weekend, it's just extremely disappointing from our side," he added.
"We are P2, but looking at how the whole year has been, I didn't expect this to happen."
Verstappen was adamant that Red Bull missing out on pole on Saturday was not a reflection upon the upgrades, which included changes to the profile of the RB19's sidepods, but rather a failure to find the best set-up for the Hungaroring.
"I don't think so, because we've been trying a few things, the upgrade looks good - it's just we didn't nail the balance of the car, it's as simple as that."
Norris rues missed opportunity
Also disappointed to miss out on pole was Lando Norris, who provided further evidence of McLaren's incredible leap forward after their recent upgrades by taking third.
Norris, who stunned the paddock by qualifying and then finishing in second at the British Grand Prix earlier in July, also ended within a tenth of a second of Hamilton.
"I think when you look at the big picture of where we've been, we'd take a P3 any day," Norris said.
"So I'm not like unhappy, I guess I'm just frustrated with my lap. Like I know Lewis made a few mistakes, Max wasn't in the best confidence level, so there's always like what else could you have done?
"But just on the lap, just a couple little things in the chicane, but many other things were like the best I've done all Qualifying. So it's just how it is sometimes."
Many, including Norris and McLaren team principal Andrea Stella, had warned that McLaren were unlikely to be able to maintain their Silverstone performance due to the slower nature of the Hungaroring, but Norris' performance was backed up by team-mate Oscar Piastri taking fourth.
Despite the strong showing, the 23-year-old Brit maintained that Mercedes and Hamilton had a slight edge around the circuit on the outskirts of Budapest.
Norris added: "I would say Mercedes probably always had the slight edge apart from on the mediums in Q2, but we were a little bit behind in Q1, we were a bit behind in Q3. Mercedes have looked good all weekend.
"Lewis is going to come over and say that they didn't look good yesterday, but they didn't put any softs on, so they looked bad, but actually they were very competitive already on the medium.
"They're always good here, they were on pole last year. I just don't think we had quite exactly what we needed to get pole. So therefore I am still happy with P3."
Sky Sports F1's live Hungarian GP schedule
Sunday July 23
7:20am: F3 Feature Race
9am: F2 Feature Race
11am: Porsche Supercup
12:30pm: Grand Prix Sunday - Hungarian GP build-up
1:30pm: F1 Juniors: Hungarian Grand Prix (Sky Sports Mix and Sky Showcase)
2pm: The HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: British GP reaction
5pm: Ted's Notebook
Daniel Ricciardo's return and first F1 Juniors broadcast headline the Hungarian Grand Prix! Watch all the action live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend. Stream the Hungarian GP and more with NOW for £21 a month.
