F1: Leclerc on pole again, Red Bull ready to pounce on Sunday

Scuderia Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc is quickly establishing himself as this season's "King of Qualifying." However, he knows that he needs to get the job done where it matters on Sunday, if he wants to claim his maiden Drivers' World Championship title.

Leclerc claimed a sixth pole position out of eight races on Saturday at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He managed to put in a scorching final flying lap, which was ahead of Monaco race winner Sergio Perez by 0.282 seconds. The second Red Bull of Max Verstappen came in another 0.065 seconds behind Perez.

Meanwhile, the other Ferrari of Carlos Sainz came in at fourth place after a somewhat messy final lap that cost him the opportunity to lock out the front row with his teammate. Nevertheless, the first two rows of the grid are once again occupied by the Red Bull and Ferrari cars.

Leclerc has been consistent in qualifying throughout the 2022 season, but the Red Bulls have managed to snatch victory from him on more than one occasion. In fact, he was last able to convert pole to a victory in the third round in Australia. After that race, he held a massive 46-point lead in the championship. Now, four races later, he is nine points behind reigning world champion Max Verstappen.

The Red Bulls were able to turn things around by winning the last four consecutive races. However, Leclerc also faced some bad luck after he retired from the lead in Spain due to an engine failure. In Monaco, he was also holding on to a comfortable lead before a wrong strategy call from the team dropped down to fourth.

The Red Bulls may be qualifying behind Leclerc, but they have consistently proven that they can pounce for the win on Sunday. Leclerc is hopeful that he can prevent this from happening again. "I am really excited for tomorrow. Tyre management is a big thing here. And our race pace has done a step up since we brought the upgrades," he said after the qualifying session.

Verstappen meanwhile, remains optimistic for good reason. "Not what I want but being second and third we have a good opportunity for tomorrow. We seem to lack a little bit on the one lap but over a long run our car should be quite good."

After Perez won in Monaco, Verstappen may actually have to worry more about his teammate. The Dutchman was initially believed to be the clear number one within the Red Bull Team, but Perez is making it clear that he won't be a doormat. The battle between the two Red Bulls may work in Ferrari's advantage in the long run, if the points end up being spread across more drivers.