F1: Hamilton takes Hungarian GP pole; Zhou jumps to 5th in qualifying thriller
Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton said it felt like a first beating Max Verstappen by the blink of an eye to take a record-extending 104th pole position of his Formula One career at the Hungarian Grand prix on Sunday.
The 38-year-old Briton was just 0.003s faster than Red Bull’s championship leader for what was also a record ninth pole at the Hungarian – the most by any driver in the history of the sport at one circuit.
It was Hamilton’s first pole position since Saudi Arabia in December 20121 and ended his run of 33 races without starting from the top slot.
“It’s been a crazy year and a half, so I’ve lost my voice from shouting so much,” said Hamilton, hoarse after giving his emotions full volume in the cockpit on his slowing down lap.
“I feel so grateful to be up here because the team have worked so hard. We’ve been pushing so hard over this time to finally get a pole and it just feels like the first time.”
McLaren’s Lando Norris qualified third with Australian rookie teammate Oscar Piastre alongside and Alfa Romeo’s Chinese racer Zhou Guanyu fifth.
“It feels good, very good, to be lining up on the grid in fifth place tomorrow. I felt comfortable from the first lap onwards, but still, I did not really expect to even finish Q1 in P1,” said Zhou.
“Overall, I would say this track layout suits our car well, which gives us great motivation ahead of tomorrow’s race. The team did an amazing job,” he added.
The Hungarian Grand Prix will remain on the Formula One calendar until at least 2032 after a five-year extension was announced in Sunday.
Formula One said in a statement the contract extension from 2027 came after the announcement of significant refurbishment of the Hungarian circuit, including a new pit building and main grandstand.
Hungary has been part of the world championship since 1986 with its circuit some 20km outside Budapest.
Source(s) & Courtesy: CGTN
