Charles Leclerc reacts to pipping Max Verstappen to pole in thrilling Bahrain qualifying | F1 | Sport

Charles Leclerc was understandably upbeat after taking the first pole of the season ahead of Max Verstappen for the Bahrain Grand Prix. Ferrari and Red Bull have been the pacesetters throughout pre-season and that continued into the weekend with Mercedes struggling to keep up.

“It feels good,” Leclerc said. “The last two years have been incredibly difficult for the team.

“We were quite hopeful that this new opportunity for us was an opportunity to be back in the front and I think we have worked extremely well as a team to find ourself again in a position to fight for better places.”

But while Leclerc was upbeat about the speed of his Ferrari, Leclerc was careful not to write Verstappen off ahead of Sunday’s race.

“I will still stay cautious. I mean the pace is there, but the race is long and anything can happen so I need to stay on it.”

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