News : Formula 1 in Austria: Charles Leclerc takes the pole position in qualifying

At the Grand Prix of Austria, Charles Leclerc will race in the Ferrari from pole position. In qualifying, the Monegasse relegated World Championship leader Lewis Hamilton to second place in the Mercedes. Third was Red Bull driver Max Verstappen. For the 21-year-old Leclerc, it is the second pole position of his career.

Sebastian Vettel suffered another setback in a difficult season: a defect in his car prevented him from making the final drive, finishing only in tenth place. Because Kevin Magnussen from Haas but backtracked, Vettel starts ninth in the race on Sunday (15:10, TV: Sky and RTL, live ticker: SPIEGEL ONLINE).

The exact cause of the damage to Vettel's Ferrari initially remained unclear. "We do not quite know yet," said the 31-year-old: "In the second qualifying session, there was suddenly a problem with the pneumatics."

Hamilton, who expressed his regret over the monotonous season, said, "It's cool that three different teams are in the top three." The 34-year-old still has to shake, as is determined because of a maneuver at the beginning of qualifying against him. His team-mate Valtteri Bottas, who had also built an accident in free practice, finished fourth.

The German Renault driver Nico Hulkenberg reached the twelfth place, but just like Vettel could not participate in the third qualifying phase, because his car had technical problems. The car is nervous on the rear axle, that's poison on long bends like here in Spielberg, "said the 31-year-old. In his Renault new drive parts had to be installed, which is why Hülkenberg is even set back by five places.