Vasseur provides his verdict on Ferrari's difficulties in Hungaroring qualifying

Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur believes the Scuderia remains firmly in contention for victory in the Hungarian Grand Prix despite Lewis Hamilton narrowly missing pole position before receiving a post-session grid penalty.

Hamilton appeared to be Ferrari's strongest challenger during qualifying at the Hungaroring after topping the timesheets in Q3 before the final runs. However, Lando Norris edged the seven-time World Champion by just 0.012s, before Hamilton was handed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Oscar Piastri at Turn 1 on his cooldown lap. The sanction drops him from second to fifth on the starting grid.

Charles Leclerc will line up on the front row after qualifying third, despite a challenging session that included a deleted lap for track limits in Q1 and yellow flags caused by Isack Hadjar's spin during the final phase of qualifying.

Despite the disappointing end to Saturday, Vasseur was pleased with Ferrari's overall competitiveness and believes the race remains wide open.

"The positive aspect of today is the level of competitiveness we have shown," Vasseur said.

"Of course, losing pole by one hundredth of a second and then receiving a three-place grid penalty with Lewis for impeding is frustrating. Charles also had a far from straightforward session, with his lap deleted for track limits in Q1 and then having to deal with yellow flags after (Isack) Hadjar spun."

Rather than dwelling on the setbacks, Vasseur stressed that Ferrari's pace throughout the weekend gives the team confidence heading into Sunday's race, where tyre management and strategy are expected to play a decisive role.

"That said, we've shown good pace throughout the weekend and tomorrow will be a long race where tyre management, strategy and execution will all be decisive. Charles starts from the front row and Lewis is still close enough to fight, so our objective remains the same: to maximise every opportunity and bring home the best possible result."

Hamilton admitted the outcome was particularly disappointing after feeling capable of claiming pole position.

"I always enjoy this track, and I've felt comfortable in the car all weekend, so today's result is frustrating," Hamilton said.

"Pole felt within reach but I didn't quite have the grip I needed on my final Q3 run, and a three-place penalty from a communication issue has left me in a starting position that isn't ideal.

"We've been competitive from the first session, so I'm hopeful we have the pace to make up ground tomorrow. Tonight, we'll keep working hard as a team to fine-tune everything and give ourselves the best possible chance in the race."

Leclerc also felt he had extracted the maximum from his qualifying performance despite the difficult conditions.

"My qualifying was about maximising the result and I think I did that today," the Monegasque said. "There was quite a bit of wind change throughout the sessions, so it was tricky to find grip on certain parts of the track.

"Our long run pace looked good so far, but it's difficult to rely on the pecking order we saw yesterday as everyone seems to have made a step forward overnight. I expect it to be much tighter in tomorrow's race."