Formula 1 French Grand Prix 2018: Results, standings, how to watch, session times, form guide

Formula 1 returned to France after a decade-long hiatus, and with championship leader Sebastian Vettel holding a solitary point lead over Lewis Hamilton, the time for all 20 drivers to take on a new circuit had never been more significant.

The 2018 race marked the first time that the French Grand Prix had been run since 2008, and the fifty-eighth time it has been included as a round of the Formula One World Championship.

The Circuit Paul Ricard, located near Le Castellet, hosted its first French Grand Prix since 1990.

This weekend proved there was everything to play for, as Formula 1 headed into its first ever triple header of races, with Austria and Great Britain coming up in consecutive weeks.

Three races, three weekends. How's everyone feeling?@RGrosjean 👍@OconEsteban 😅@PierreGASLY 💪@alo_oficial 🤔#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/HgLtWGBnln

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 21, 2018

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: FORM GUIDE

Vettel's win in Canada vaulted the four-time world champion into the lead of the driver standings, albeit by a point over Hamilton.

Canada marked Vettel's third win of 2018, following his victories in Australia and Bahrain. Hamilton (Azerbaijan, Spain) and Daniel Ricciardo (China, Monaco) are the others to have jumped on the board this season.

Heading to Paul Ricard, race victories at the last three French Grands Prix hosted at the circuit were shared between McLaren and Ferrari. However, given that was over quarter of a century ago, no team or driver in 2018 will read too far into that.

However, Paul Ricard's long straights will reward teams with strong engine power, while the long, sweeping corners will favour teams with good aero. From this, expect Ferrari and Mercedes to be locked together at the front, but Red Bull have made significant gains.

“Ferrari are the favourites, based on what we saw in Montreal" ⬇️ https://t.co/ZIQkgnyy8j

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 21, 2018

Most importantly, given no driver has raced there in Formula 1 - away from sporadic tyre tests - Paul Ricard will level the playing field.

There will be three French drivers on the grid - Romain Grosjean (Haas), Esteban Ocon (Force India) and Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso).

🇫🇷Merci @GPFranceF1 🇫🇷😍! pic.twitter.com/Rs1Syp51Tb

— Esteban Ocon (@OconEsteban) June 21, 2018

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: KEY STATS

- Only four of the current drivers took part in the last French Grand Prix, which was held at Magny-Cours in 2008: Hamilton, Vettel, Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen. Now-retired Felipe Massa won that race ahead of Raikkonen.

- A whopping 10 out of the 20 drivers on the grid hadn't been born when the last French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard took place in 1990.

- Alain Prost's 1990 win at Paul Ricard was Ferrari’s 100th.

It's been almost three decades since #F1 raced at the Circuit Paul Ricard 🇫🇷

Just look how different things were in 1990 📽#FrenchGP pic.twitter.com/1ejn8S72jk

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 20, 2018

- Circuit Paul Ricard has 167 possible layouts, making it one of the most versatile circuits in the world. Formula 1 will use the 5.842 km-long layout.

With 167 possible layouts, it's one of the most versatile circuits in the world!

But only one configuration at @PaulRicardTrack will count this weekend#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/ZxzhyVrgth

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 21, 2018

- Hamilton took his 75th pole position in Formula 1, and his first in France. He extends his all-time lead over Michael Schumacher (68) and Ayrton Senna (64). Vettel sits fourth with 54 poles.

Jump on board for your ultimate @PaulRicardTrack experience

As Lewis Hamilton takes his first pole position in France#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/ALHgXIr8KX

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 23, 2018

- Hamilton took his 65th career win, and 44th for Mercedes since joining the team in 2013.

"It's a beautiful Sunday. Happy Sunday everyone!"

👏 @LewisHamilton#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/0J1vlvNPOP

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 24, 2018

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: TYRE COMPOUNDS

Pirelli supplied the purple-walled ultrasoft as the softest available compound, with the red-walled supersoft sitting in the middle and the yellow-walled soft the hardest.

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: WEATHER

It was a warm weekend, with highs of 30 degrees during Friday’s practice sessions, before dropping to around 26 degrees on Saturday and Sunday.

However, rain arrived on Saturday, which added spice to FP3 and qualifying.

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: SESSION TIMES

FP1: Friday 8:00pm

🏁 FP1 CLASSIFICATION 🏁

The Mercedes duo lead the way, with Grosjean pipping Verstappen for P6 👏#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/3N8pP23rP3

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 22, 2018

FP2: Saturday 12:00am

FP2 CLASSIFICATION: Hamilton lays down a marker #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/XyGBh9JMXz

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 22, 2018

FP3: Saturday 9:00pm

FP3 CLASSIFICATION: 20 drivers, and just 61 laps completed #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/Nz3LXXkekb

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 23, 2018

Qualifying: Sunday 12:00am

QUALIFYING, Q3 CLASSIFICATION: Hamilton's 75th career pole, and his 3rd this season 👏 #FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/aVpHG4i6y1

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 23, 2018

Race: Monday 12:10am

🏁 CLASSIFICATION (RACE FINISH) 🏁

A controlled race from Hamilton and the 26th different circuit where he's won!#FrenchGP 🇫🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/EAr0dCXJ5f

— Formula 1 (@F1) June 24, 2018

All times shown AEST.

2018 FRENCH GRAND PRIX: HOW TO WATCH

All Formula 1 Grands Prix in 2018 are shown live and ad-free on Fox Sports, with Fox Sports 506 to be your port of call for all race weekends in 2018. Check local guides.

F1 DRIVER STANDINGS

AFTER ROUND 8 (FRANCE)

F1 CONSTRUCTOR STANDINGS

AFTER ROUND 8 (FRANCE)