Surprise: Hamilton grabs horn pole from Verstappen at Hungarian F1 GP!

After 9 pole positions in 10 races for Red Bull, 7 of them for Max Verstappen (5 in a row), and throughout the Dutchman’s dominance in F1it seems unlikely that Max Verstappen will have a challenge in the short term. But the surprise came with an experimental classification that was successfully tested at the Hungarian GP of F1 2023. As if it was the script for the film shot by Brad Pitt about F1, where Lewis Hamilton works as a producer, Hamilton himself became the protagonist of a magical work. Hamilton took the pole on the horn, in the last breath, before his great rival and public enemy number 1, Max Verstappen, who was left more than ever with honey on his lips. He surpassed him by only 3 thousandths. Unbelievable. Unforeseen. Very beautiful. From the movie.

Second is Verstappen at 3 thousandths. Norris was 3rd in 85 thousandths in a McLaren fully confirmed after shining at Silverstone. Meanwhile, in the last attempt Alonso lost his position. He was overtaken by Piastri (4th), Zhou (5th), Leclerc (6th) and Bottas (7th). Fernando Alonso was 8th ahead of Sergio Pérz (9th) and HÜlkenberg (10th).

A classification of madness

After the unexpected improvement of McLaren and Mercedes in recent races, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton became the two important rivals for a Max who only saw Red Bull’s victory in Monaco at risk against Alonso. But in recent weeks, everything seems to have changed. This F1 has been modified. After a surprising change in tire casings (harder) and the evolution and development of cars like McLaren and Mercedes, on another track, a mousetrap, like the Hungaroring, Verstappen suffered and had surprises and uncertainties, which is what this competition is looking for: battle, expectations, and in the end, evoke strong emotions. Joys and sorrows. That’s how life really is, right?

And this time, the fun is for Lewis Hamilton. When everyone assumed that Verstappen was saving pole position despite pressure from Norris and Lewis, the 7-time world champion took out his hammer to walk to deliver a blow that was heard around the planet, as the roar of a stand in Hungary that, despite being filled with orange, erupted in joy in celebration of fans of all teams.

Everyone wants to have a fight. That he won’t always be the same. And this post gives them the chance, or at least the hope, that this Sunday will once again bring out the match of the Century.

Surprises, with Sainz in Q3

In qualifying this Saturday, an experimental format was tested which could open up more of the range of opportunities. This made everyone’s job more difficult, as the teams no longer had a free wheel choice. They were forced to use the hard tire in Q1, a rubber they would never have used for ‘qualification’ if they had had the choice. In Q2, it’s the turn of the medium wheel. And in Q3, along with the soft attack. To do this, everyone had to change their work plans for the whole weekend because they not only had to try qualifying on soft and long runs with the rest of the tires, but this time they had to invest time to see the performance of medium and hard at the same time. Uncertainty has increased. In the free ones, the drawing to be shot on the Hungarian canvas is not intuited. They all doubted. And in qualifying, there were many surprises.

The first, the elimination of George Russell in Q3 as Gasly took over the line of cars in the final corner before making his final attempt. He fell asleep and stole his wallet. And in Q2, it is Carlos Sainz who was eliminated without entering the top 10 (11th) for only two thousandths. In Q3 the two Alfa Romeos, the two McLarens and one Haas entered. The world is upside down. So did Fernando Alonso, again marking the difference in his hands.

amazing last fight

The final match, with two new sets of soft tires for everyone, is the must-see F1 show. A fight without quarter. In Q2, the top 10 drivers were only 3 tenths apart. That heralded an incredible battle for grid position this Sunday.

There, Verstappen laughed first. It seemed to say ‘see you later everyone with a great time and end the game. He took the lead, beating Hamilton by a tenth and Norris by two, with an excellent Alonso taking the most risks, including two whiplashes, to put his Aston Martin in fourth position. The last bullet was left. The tension is at its highest. There, it seems no one can beat Max, but Hamilton arrives with his last cartridge. With a precise shot, as in his best stage, he achieved another pole position, number 104, and this Sunday he will look for his 104th victory, the best way to face his more likely renewal at Mercedes.