After taking his first pole position in almost 600 days, Lewis Hamilton was quick to express his heartfelt gratitude to the Mercedes team personnel who have laboured over the last year and a half to get back on terms with Red Bull.
But there was one other person Hamilton should have been grateful for: The person who determined where the official timing line would sit on the pit straight.While the Mercedes driver only just snatched pole from underneath Max Verstappen nose by just three-thousandths of a second, it should have been by more. Hamilton was 0.15s up on the Red Bull’s provisional pole time heading into the final corner of the lap, but Verstappen’s exit from it was much better than the Mercedes driver, causing him to gain time all the way until he ran out of road with the delta at just 0.003 seconds. In the end, Hamilton’s pole position margin was just 17 centimetres on a 4.3-kilometre lap.
That remarkable statistic reflected just how close the qualifying session for the Hungarian Grand Prix had been. Statistically, it was comfortably the closest Q3 of the season so far in terms of the margin between first and tenth and one of the closest ever since the three-stage knockout format was first introduced in 2006.
Hamilton not only ended his pole drought, he broke Verstappen’s five-race pole streak in the process. But even though the runaway championship leader had missed out on the top spot of the grid by one of the slimmest margins in history, he was deeply dissatisfied about his car’s handling.
“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 a car,” Verstappen explained.
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Verstappen may be disgruntled by having missed out on the shortest run to the first corner for the grand prix, but Sundays have been a very different prospect to Saturdays all season long so far in 2023. The RB19 is an excellent qualifying car but it is an exceptional race car, holding an unblemished record of ten victories from ten attempts.
“To be only eight hundredths off pole position, I think we’re pretty happy with that,” Norris said. “A little bit surprised, but at the same time I think it’s a good surprise.”
Heading into the race, Verstappen may have more reason to be wary of the McLarens behind than Hamilton ahead. The Alternative Tyre Allocation may have led to some teams treating their sets sparingly over the three practice sessions but it also seemed to encourage longer runs in second Friday practice.
Comparing the long runs of the top four starters, Norris and Piastri averaged faster lap times on the medium compound (1’23.6) than Hamilton and his Mercedes team mate George Russell did (1’24.2). Verstappen ran at a faster pace than all three of them (1’23.3), but he completed his stint on the soft compound tyre.
What was especially striking about the long run data was just how quick a pace Alfa Romeo were able to run at. Having secured easily their best qualifying results of the season with fifth for Zhou Guanyu and seventh for Valtteri Bottas, the two Alfa Romeos were faster on their high-fuel runs on the mediums (1’23.3 average) than either the McLarens or the Mercedes.
Norris was especially upset in qualifying that he had maybe not fully extracted the best lap possible out of his car and cost himself pole position as a result. “It’s just a difficult track to overtake,” he explained. “Which is probably why I’m a bit more frustrated that I normally would be.”
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But Norris might be letting his natural pessimism get ahead of him in this regard. Last year’s race saw over 50 on-track passing moves completed over the 70 laps. Admittedly that number was inflated by Verstappen starting down the order and only five of those 50 were for positions in the top five, but as Norris points out the Hungaroring is not as low-speed a circuit as its reputation suggests, it is likely not quite as difficult to pass around as he maintains.
Asked what he expects to see at the start of the race, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said he anticipated “good fun” between the two fierce rivals.
“None of them really has something to risk or to lose,” Wolff explained. “So they would be for sure racing each other at the beginning and it’s great. Lewis, I’m sure, will give it everything he has to put up a great fight but we also need to stay realistic.”
Pirelli expect the high track temperatures will produce a two-stop race. This year, the three compounds nominated for the Hungaroring are each a step softer than they were last season, leading Pirelli to expect that the soft C5 compound will be avoided by teams due to its lack of durability. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc can at least rest easy that his team’s ill-fated strategy which dropped him from the lead to finishing in sixth will likely not be repeatable this time around.
Either way, all the ingredients appear to be present for a fascinating flat-out battle for victory on Sunday. And with the added intrigue of Russell down in 18th, Carlos Sainz Jnr out of position in 11th and Daniel Ricciardo making his first start since the end of last season, there will be plenty to look out for throughout the field during the Hungarian Grand Prix – one that pole winner Hamilton is daring to dream could give him a long sought after next victory.
“If there’s a way to hold position, then maybe there’s a fighting chance for us,” he said. “But just even being up there in the top three. It’s new. We’re going to have a great race, for sure.”
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Qualifying times in full
| Position | Number | Driver | Team | Q1 time | Q2 time (vs Q1) | Q3 time (vs Q2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1’18.577 | 1’17.427 (-1.150s) | 1’16.609 (-0.818s) |
| 2 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | 1’18.318 | 1’17.547 (-0.771s) | 1’16.612 (-0.935s) |
| 3 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren-Mercedes | 1’18.697 | 1’17.328 (-1.369s) | 1’16.694 (-0.634s) |
| 4 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren-Mercedes | 1’18.464 | 1’17.571 (-0.893s) | 1’16.905 (-0.666s) |
| 5 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | 1’18.143 | 1’17.700 (-0.443s) | 1’16.971 (-0.729s) |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1’18.440 | 1’17.580 (-0.860s) | 1’16.992 (-0.588s) |
| 7 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo-Ferrari | 1’18.775 | 1’17.563 (-1.212s) | 1’17.034 (-0.529s) |
| 8 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin-Mercedes | 1’18.580 | 1’17.701 (-0.879s) | 1’17.035 (-0.666s) |
| 9 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull-Honda RBPT | 1’18.360 | 1’17.675 (-0.685s) | 1’17.045 (-0.630s) |
| 10 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas-Ferrari | 1’18.695 | 1’17.652 (-1.043s) | 1’17.186 (-0.466s) |
| 11 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Ferrari | 1’18.393 | 1’17.703 (-0.690s) | Missed by 0.002s |
| 12 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine-Renault | 1’18.854 | 1’17.841 (-1.013s) | Missed by 0.140s |
| 13 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT | 1’18.906 | 1’18.002 (-0.904s) | Missed by 0.301s |
| 14 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin-Mercedes | 1’18.782 | 1’18.144 (-0.638s) | Missed by 0.443s |
| 15 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine-Renault | 1’18.743 | 1’18.217 (-0.526s) | Missed by 0.516s |
| 16 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams-Mercedes | 1’18.917 | Missed by 0.011s | |
| 17 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT | 1’18.919 | Missed by 0.013s | |
| 18 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1’19.027 | Missed by 0.121s | |
| 19 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas-Ferrari | 1’19.206 | Missed by 0.300s | |
| 20 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams-Mercedes | 1’19.248 | Missed by 0.342s |
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Sector times
| Position | Number | Driver | Sector one | Sector two | Sector three | Ultimate lap | Deficit to ultimate lap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | 27.782 (1) | 27.044 (2) | 21.547 (1) | 1’16.373 | 0.239 |
| 2 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | 27.817 (2) | 27.124 (4) | 21.629 (2) | 1’16.570 | 0.039 |
| 3 | 4 | Lando Norris | 27.878 (5) | 27.123 (3) | 21.693 (3) | 1’16.694 | – |
| 4 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | 27.909 (6) | 27.033 (1) | 21.818 (9) | 1’16.760 | 0.145 |
| 5 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | 27.921 (7) | 27.279 (7) | 21.733 (5) | 1’16.933 | 0.102 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | 27.863 (4) | 27.278 (6) | 21.814 (8) | 1’16.955 | 0.037 |
| 7 | 11 | Sergio Perez | 27.947 (9) | 27.289 (8) | 21.728 (4) | 1’16.964 | 0.081 |
| 8 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | 27.858 (3) | 27.276 (5) | 21.837 (10) | 1’16.971 | – |
| 9 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | 27.929 (8) | 27.305 (9) | 21.762 (7) | 1’16.996 | 0.038 |
| 10 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | 27.947 (9) | 27.455 (10) | 21.753 (6) | 1’17.155 | 0.031 |
| 11 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | 28.084 (12) | 27.697 (12) | 21.922 (12) | 1’17.703 | – |
| 12 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | 28.036 (11) | 27.72 (13) | 22.021 (14) | 1’17.777 | 0.064 |
| 13 | 18 | Lance Stroll | 28.293 (15) | 27.618 (11) | 21.899 (11) | 1’17.810 | 0.334 |
| 14 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | 28.163 (13) | 27.861 (15) | 21.96 (13) | 1’17.984 | 0.018 |
| 15 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | 28.176 (14) | 27.837 (14) | 22.032 (15) | 1’18.045 | 0.172 |
| 16 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | 28.424 (19) | 28.186 (19) | 22.176 (16) | 1’18.786 | 0.133 |
| 17 | 63 | George Russell | 28.483 (20) | 28.088 (17) | 22.219 (17) | 1’18.790 | 0.237 |
| 18 | 23 | Alexander Albon | 28.395 (17) | 27.989 (16) | 22.408 (19) | 1’18.792 | 0.125 |
| 19 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | 28.407 (18) | 28.141 (18) | 22.493 (20) | 1’19.041 | 0.207 |
| 20 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | 28.353 (16) | 28.488 (20) | 22.365 (18) | 1’19.206 | – |
Speed trap
| Position | Number | Driver | Car | Engine | Model | Max kph (mph) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | Ferrari | VF-23 | 308.7 (191.8) |
| 2 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | Mercedes | MCL60 | 308.0 (191.4) |
| 3 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Ferrari | Ferrari | SF-23 | 307.3 (190.9) |
| 4 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | Ferrari | VF-23 | 306.6 (190.5) |
| 5 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | Mercedes | AMR23 | 306.6 (190.5) |
| 6 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | Mercedes | AMR23 | 306.0 (190.1) |
| 7 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | Honda RBPT | RB19 | 305.9 (190.1) |
| 8 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams | Mercedes | FW45 | 305.8 (190.0) |
| 9 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | Ferrari | SF-23 | 305.7 (190.0) |
| 10 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | Mercedes | FW45 | 305.3 (189.7) |
| 11 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | Renault | A523 | 305.3 (189.7) |
| 12 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | C43 | 305.0 (189.5) |
| 13 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | Mercedes | W14 | 304.9 (189.5) |
| 14 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | Honda RBPT | RB19 | 304.9 (189.5) |
| 15 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | Renault | A523 | 304.6 (189.3) |
| 16 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | C43 | 304.3 (189.1) |
| 17 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | Mercedes | MCL60 | 303.7 (188.7) |
| 18 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | Mercedes | W14 | 303.3 (188.5) |
| 19 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | AlphaTauri | Honda RBPT | AT04 | 299.7 (186.2) |
| 20 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | AlphaTauri | Honda RBPT | AT04 | 299.0 (185.8) |
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Over to you
Do Mercedes or McLaren have any realistic hope of containing Max Verstappen? Share your views on the Hungarian Grand Prix in the comments.
2023 Hungarian Grand Prix
- Was F1’s Alternative Tyre Allocation test successful? Drivers and teams have their say
- How far can McLaren climb with car rivals now say is the second-fastest in F1?
- Why Ricciardo says McLaren’s car “speaks Lando’s language” – but Norris disagrees
- Mercedes reveal cooling error behind loss of pace in Hungarian GP
- Perez answered critics in Hungary but needs to qualify better – Horner
Michael
23rd July 2023, 0:47
Based on the long run lap times could Zhou in an Alfa Romeo could be the biggest threat to Red Bull’s winning record, at a track where Ocon won in a Renault and Hill nearly won in an Arrows.
Michael
23rd July 2023, 1:01
Not to mention the track where Alonso took his debut win lapping both teammate Trulli, and the eventual world champion Michael Schumacher, Riccardo picked up a win over the dominant Mercedes in 2014, and Kovalainen took his only win (ahead of Glock). Interesting results do tend to happen at the Hungaroring.
Todfod (@todfod)
23rd July 2023, 8:38
Could be a Norris debut win tomorrow. If Hamilton and Verstappen get messy at the start, or eat up their tyres battling each other, there’s two pacey Mclarens behind them.
PacificPR (@streydt)
23rd July 2023, 7:08
The Alfa’s had great pace all weekend indeed and what a great lap by Zhou. I am a bit doubtful about the race though and it hasn’t so much to do with pace. Where as Lewis, Verstappen and the McLaren’s don’t have a lot to lose – the Alfa’s do, opportunities for good points don’t come so often for them and they might be more progressive and careful as the cars around them – but let’s see! Would be great to have Zhou or Bottas on the podium (or close to it)z
Rushan
23rd July 2023, 8:31
Yep. Zhou said in the post quali interview, that they are trying to be the best of the rest behind Max, Lewis, McLarens and even checo or charles showed he had to not race them. Because AR is P9 (9 points) in constructor championship and P7 (Williams and Hass both are on 11 points) is just 2 points ahead. Every points counts for lower teams. I think Zhou target for P7 and Bottas for P8. That’s 10 points and with that AR will have 19 points in P7 and they can breath for 2-3 races with 8 points ahead of any teams lower than them.
Ajaxn
23rd July 2023, 11:23
I also think with Daniel Ricciardo’s sudden promotion back into f1 at AlphaTauri, its given the other drivers gee-up, since the same fate might befall them if they’re not pulling their weight. This is one of those rare tracks where it’s much more about skill around the corners than all-out pace down the straights.
Kb davies
23rd July 2023, 2:09
Jhshdh
Jere (@jerejj)
23rd July 2023, 5:23
Do Mercedes or McLaren have any realistic hope of containing Max Verstappen? – No.
asd
23rd July 2023, 10:22
They do. Hungaroring is very difficult to overtake on, and if Verstappen falls to 3rd, 4th or 5th at the start (which is possible as if he starts from the firsty side of the track) and then is stuck behind until the first pitstops, then the race is done for him.
x303 (@x303)
23rd July 2023, 13:17
I hope starting on the right side of the track slows down Verstappen: it will allow the McLarens to pass and make for an even better race for everyone.
Fritz
23rd July 2023, 7:18
@Will Wood.
Why does the article start with ” somebody did SLH a favor”? Why not highlight that SLH in a slower car managed to take pole?
At the first sign of Lewis having some success you start of with a ” he should be grateful article”?
If you sumup the cons and pros in Hamiltons F1 career do you Will Wood feel that F1 has been indifferent/ aided or hindered SLH:s career?
Personally reading your article makes me a mit wary.
notagrumpyfan
23rd July 2023, 7:49
Actually, the article starts with a reference to LH expressing “his heartfelt gratitude”.
But I guess there will always be driver fans who think their hero is treated unfairly.
IMO @WillWood is the least biased of all contributors on this site (maybe a bit generous towards Alonso), and I enjoy how he always includes some interesting statistics and nice-to-knows into his articles.
MadMax (@madmax)
23rd July 2023, 8:55
Lewis didnt make the optimum last part of the map, but luckily Verstappen messed up his 2nd shot and also didnt utilize his cars pace in the first run. Lets see if Verstappen can keep his wits together at the start, as he usually is unable to drive clean against Hamilton.
SadF1fan
23rd July 2023, 10:04
You mean Hamilton can’t drive clean versus Verstappen.
Ajaxn
23rd July 2023, 11:29
At least Hamilton didn’t do a Russell.
What on earth happened to Russell? This was yet another rookie mistake from the driver looking to take over from Hamilton. He had everything to lose in that position, why didn’t he just take off after Hamilton? Never mind building a gap?
MadMax (@madmax)
23rd July 2023, 12:11
Its the crashkid who always searches the contact.
Andy (@andyfromsandy)
23rd July 2023, 12:29
In the last coming together with Verstappen and Hamilton, Verstappen was adjudged to be at fault. Verstappen even made a stupid comment that he didn’t care he ruined Hamilton’s race.
Although not life threatening Verstappen made that rather childish move while sim racing to take out a competitor who had perhaps wronged Verstappen earlier in the race.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
23rd July 2023, 23:39
You can see here on the best sector times how hamilton did a better job than verstappen: verstappen putting the sectors together had at least 2 tenths margin.