Spectacular qualifying performance for the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team with Charles Leclerc finishing in P8 and Marcus Ericsson in P15.

Qualifying was superb for the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team ahead of the 2018 FIA Formula 1 French Grand Prix at Circuit Paul Ricard. The team made it into Q3 with Monegasque Rookie Charles Leclerc finishing in P8. After only participating in one free-practice session this weekend (FP1), Marcus Ericsson finished in P15, advancing to Q2 after giving a strong performance in the first qualifying round. The team has made improvements since arriving at Le Castellet and is optimistic for the rest of the weekend, going into the race with an extra boost of motivation.

Marcus Ericsson: "After the weekend that I have had, I can say that I am satisfied with my result today, especially considering that I missed both FP2, following an incident in FP1, and FP3 due to the rain. Given the limited amount of time we had, I did not think that Q2 was possible. Instead the qualifying went well. Q1 ran smoothly, and I had a good lap that let me progress to Q2. In Q2 I had strong pace, but unfortunately lost some time in my last fast-lap attempt after making an error. I am happy with the result. The whole team did a good job. Having one car finish in Q2, and the other in Q3, is a great reward for the whole team – both at the track and at the factory. I look forward to tomorrow."

Charles Leclerc: "I am very happy with my qualifying today. It was not only a success in terms of the final result, but also because since yesterday we made a huge step forward. To finish qualifying in P8 (Q3) is an amazing feeling, and I would like to thank the team for the job they have done. The car feels great and I feel very comfortable on track. I look forward to the race very much, and am excited to see what will be possible."

Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal: "We are very pleased with today's result. Having one car in Q2 (Marcus Ericsson), and the other in Q3 (Charles Leclerc), is a great achievement for the whole team. Charles did a perfect job in managing his lap and picking up the pace and Marcus made it into Q2 for the first time this season. We made a great recovery with both drivers since yesterday, with Marcus only having one practice session ahead of qualifying and Charles struggling to find a good balance. The most important thing for us is to stay focused and to concentrate on continuing to do a good job tomorrow."

Check out our Saturday gallery from Paul Ricard, here.