2019 French GP: Quali – Analysis by sector

The Mercedes drivers once again dominated the qualifying session. Hamilton took pole position, with Valtteri Bottas following right behind. How did the quali session unfold? Who was the fastest driver in each sector? Let’s take a look at the numbers.

Qualifying session best times per sector

This analysis only takes into consideration the best sector time for each driver. This means that not all best sector times were necessarily done in Q3, some may have been done in Q2 or even in Q1.

Lewis Hamilton was the fastest driver in all three sectors. The Britishman showed his ruthlessness once again, and managed to defeat a focused Valtteri Bottas.

Sebastian Vettel had a session to forget. The German driver could not put together a full lap, and while his second sector was very competitive, he never managed to find the rhythm in the first and particularly in the third sector.

Charles Leclerc was consistently the third best driver of the grid. He qualified third, and posted the third best time in all three sectors.

Red Bull struggled not only in sectors 2 and 3, but also in the slower sector 1. Max Verstappen was outpaced in all three sectors by at least one McLaren driver, while Gasly was not even able to do a better sector 3 than Antonio Giovinazzi.

McLaren did a great job, and managed to take the third row entirely. Carlos Sainz was faster than Max in sectors 1 and 2, and faster than Vettel in sectors 1 and 3. Lando posted the 4th fastest sector 3 of the session, and outpaced his teammate in sectors 2 and 3.

Renault and Alfa Romeo should be feeling happy with their respective positions. While both teams lost a driver before Q3, both Daniel Ricciardo and Antonio Giovinazzi managed to find the pace at the Circuit Paul Ricard. Danny Ric had a very strong sector 2, showing that perhaps the Renault engine is getting better, while Giovinazzi managed to get once again into Q3 and defeat his teammate.

Final remarks

What a great session for McLaren. 5th and 6th place, and not by pure luck, but by showing strong one lap pace in all three sectors. The next race in Austria will most likely be harder for them, but for now, they get their chance to celebrate. Time to get the job done tomorrow.

Ferrari had a bittersweet day. Leclerc has looked strong all weekend, and managed a 3rd position in quali, but Vettel never managed to find the rythm.

Mercedes, well, not much to say about them. They got the job done, and they did it in style. Hamilton keeps showing that he is the driver to beat, and looks poised to take another race victory tomorrow.

Not the best day for Red Bull. The engine upgrade did not seem to make a difference in France, and they seem to be lacking pace in sector 2. While they are characterized by their strong race pace, maximum speed is necessary in order to overtake in corners 8 and 9. It will be a hard race for the Austrian team.

Finally, a good day for Renault and Alfa Romeo. The French team will be hoping to get both cars into Q3 next time, but after their upgrade, Ricciardo had strong pace in all three sectors. Regarding Gio, he managed to put himself in a good starting position. Alfa Romeo struggled with race pace in FP2, but Antonio will be hoping for another story tomorrow.

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