Charles Leclerc takes Pole Position in Australia, the eleventh in his career, on the track where he debuted for Ferrari three years ago. His final lap in the session allowed him to gain a good margin on Verstappen in P2, who had set the best lap time in Q1. 

The Monegasque was pleased with his overall performance in the post qualifying interview, even if he didn't complete a perfect lap:

"Yes, it was a good lap. This time I took quite a bit of risk, especially in Turn 6 which was tricky. I wasn’t really on it during qualifying in this corner [Turn 6], just doing some mistakes," he said.

"Then, in the last Q3 lap I managed to make it right, and I think I gained quite a bit on myself compared to the other laps."

Leclerc is particularly satisfied by his driving as Albert Park has never been an easy track for him, with a P5 as his own personal best in F1. The new track layout didn't ease up his "struggles":

"I’m very happy with the lap, and, especially on a track like this where I’ve always struggled in the past and also [in free practice], even though we were competitive, it was very difficult to put a lap together."

His main concern for the weekend so far, he went on to explain, has been putting in a clean lap without too many imperfections, which has been hard for him in previous practice sessions as well.

"I was just [making] quite a bit of mistakes so I was working on consistency and managed to put that lap together in Q3. So, very, very happy, and it’s good to be starting on pole tomorrow.”

The Ferrari driver discussed the new layout, and how it didn't change his issues at Albert Park, adding that an extra factor of discomfort for him was the sun setting on the track:

"I’ve always struggled, even on the previous layout. I’ve always struggled with these types of corners that are not really 90 degrees, but it’s just strange."

"And yes, always struggled with my driving style here, but I think it’s also an overall thing for all the drivers; it’s a very tricky track, very challenging track for us drivers, and it was even trickier with the sun."

Leclerc swapped his usual helmet visor in Q3 for "the darkest available", as he said asking for it in a team radio during the session, but it didn't completely help.

"The sun in Q2, we just couldn’t see anything; in Q3 it was a little bit better on the first run… the second run it wasn’t. It was a very tricky session.”

He has a good feeling for tomorrow's race, even if direct competitors for the championship lead Red Bull shouldn't be counted out for the race win:

"Yes, the car is nice to drive, but the Red Bulls were very quick in FP2 during the long fuel runs. But, to be honest, we were again quite surprised by our pace in qualifying – so everything is possible tomorrow."

"We just need a good start and hopefully we can keep that first position," he concluded hopefully.