It appears that Charles Leclerc was correct in naming Max Verstappen as one of the “nicest drivers” on the Formula 1 grid, with the reigning World Champion having reportedly consoled Fernando Alonso after beating him to pole position.
Leclerc told Canal+ during the Monaco Grand Prix that Verstappen was incredibly friendly, a side he doesn’t often show when he’s in the cockpit.
When he’s driving, Verstappen is seemingly an imperious winner, with him having already claimed four wins from the opening six races this season.
Verstappen’s dominant victory on Sunday at the Circuit de Monaco was remarkably the 39th of his F1 career, meaning he eclipsed Sebastian Vettel’s 38 wins for Red Bull.
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The two-time World Champion’s victory arguably came thanks to his mesmerising pole lap though, given how virtually impossible overtaking is at the Principality.
Until the final sector, Alonso was looking set for a first career pole since 2012 German Grand Prix; however, Verstappen somehow found three tenths in the last few corners.
The Dutch driver secured his third pole position of the year to the agony of Alonso, who it appears believed he’d done enough for the best starting position at Monaco.
After the session, Verstappen was reportedly seen sharing a moment with Alonso, which F1 podcast presenter Tom Clarkson revealed as having been “lovely”.
“There was a lovely moment in the press conference after qualifying,” Clarkson said on the F1 Nation podcast.
“So they’ve only been out of the cars, say, five minutes, they have a quick chat on the grid.
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“Then they come to the press conference and Fernando came in first, and he sat down in his chair and he sort of was slumped a little bit – and you could see he was just, I think, reflecting on what he had just done.
“Max was the next driver to arrive, and they just sort of, I’m not going to say it was a hug, but they just sort of squeezed each other’s shoulders and didn’t say a word to each other.
“This is before all the cameras were turned on, and right there, I saw a mutual respect between those two that is that is not often seen, I think, in Formula 1.”