Clear skies and sunny. Air temperature 20, track 38.
Q1. Both drivers take to the track on Soft tyres. Charles laps in 1’42”105, while Carlos who had gone out on used Softs to carry out a check, pits for a new set. The Spaniard goes out again but is unable to set a time as the session is red-flagged when Nyck de Vries hits the barriers. The session resumes with ten minutes to go, but almost immediately the session is stopped again, as Pierre Gasly crashes. With just seven minutes to go, the session resumes and Sainz finally sets a time of 1’42”614, before improving to 1’42”197. Leclerc goes quicker with a 1’41”838 and then the fastest time of all in 1’42”269.
Q2. Charles and Carlos leave the garage on new Softs. On his first flying lap, the Monegasque posts a 1’41”216, but Carlos makes a mistake and has to go again, to set a time of 1’41”517. Leclerc gets down to 1’41”037 and shortly after, his team-mate laps in 1’41”369 so they both progress to Q3.
Q3. For the key phase of qualifying both drivers have two new sets of Soft tyres. Charles begins with a 1’40”445, the same time to the nearest thousandth as Max Verstappen, who is listed as fastest, having set the time first. Carlos stops the clocks in 1’41”016 for provisional fourth place. They pit for new tyres. Leclerc secures pole, the 19th of his career, with a 1’40”203. Carlos will start fourth from the second row.