Lewis Hamilton achieved an unexpected pole position for Saturday’s Sprint at the Chinese Grand Prix, marking only his second race weekend with Ferrari.
After a challenging debut with the team in Melbourne where he finished tenth, Hamilton made a remarkable comeback during Sprint Qualifying at the Shanghai circuit, a track where he has previously won a record six grand prix races.
Despite McLaren being considered the favorites, Hamilton had different plans. The seven-time world champion not only outperformed his new teammate Charles Leclerc for the first time but also demonstrated superior pace compared to his rivals, securing his first pole position in Ferrari red in just his second attempt.
It’s Hamilton’s first pole position in any F1 qualifying format since July 2023.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished third, while Lando Norris ended up sixth after a mistake on his final lap, a disappointing result for the early title contender.
Max Verstappen will start alongside his long-time rival Hamilton on the front row for the Sprint, following another strong performance in his Red Bull. Leclerc will start fourth, lapping 0.2 seconds slower than the leading Ferrari.
Upon hearing from his race engineer Riccardo Adami that he had achieved pole position, a surprised Hamilton responded, ‘Really? Hahaha! Mega job. Woo!’
Reactions to Hamilton’s Pole
Lewis Hamilton: ‘I’m just a bit gobsmacked, taken back by it. I didn’t know when we would get to this position.
‘After last weekend, it was a difficult start to the week. We came here with aggression and wanting to go into the weekend and get the car into a great place.
‘I started out straight away with a better feeling in the car. I can’t believe we are at the front, ahead of a McLaren which has been so fast throughout winter testing, Australia and even today.’
Martin Brundle: ‘You could see straight away in the first four turns, Hamilton had it on point. The car was really stable and he was hustling the throttle and he got the tyres, pressures and temperatures absolutely in the window, so did Max.’
Karun Chandhok: ‘What a story! Lewis Hamilton is on pole! We didn’t get a fairytale moment in Melbourne but we only had to wait six days.
‘It’s justified his move in some ways. He’s re-energised, re-invigorated, re-motivated but most importantly he’s delivered on the timesheets.’
Hamilton’s Comeback
Shanghai is hosting the first of six Sprint events this season, which includes an extra qualifying session and a shorter race before the main Grand Prix.
After Ferrari’s struggles in Melbourne, Hamilton mentioned on Thursday that he would try a different setup for this weekend.
Whether due to these adjustments or the Shanghai circuit better suiting the car, Ferrari showed improved competitiveness from the start. Leclerc was second and Hamilton fourth in practice before Sprint Qualifying.
Ferrari’s performance continued to improve throughout qualifying, with Hamilton excelling, especially on a track where he has historically performed well.
Hamilton was fastest in SQ1, second in SQ2, and ultimately fastest in SQ3 as McLaren’s challenge faded.
Hamilton’s pole time of 1:30.849 was only 0.018 seconds faster than Verstappen and 0.080 seconds ahead of Piastri.
‘I’m hoping we can hold onto it [on Saturday] but I think the McLarens are very fast, as is Max,’ Hamilton said before the Sprint race.
‘But we are in a good position, we will stay positive and keep our heads high, and keep pushing forwards.’
Leclerc, who outqualified Hamilton in Melbourne, was behind his teammate in all qualifying segments this time and expressed surprise at Ferrari’s strategy in SQ2.
Verstappen also admitted to exceeding his own expectations, stating, ‘I’m very happy. In practice, we were quite a bit off so I’m very happy to be on the front row.’
Norris’s Struggles
Despite McLaren’s apparent advantage earlier in the weekend, Norris, despite topping SQ2, didn’t maintain his form in SQ3.
The British driver struggled on his first SQ3 run and a mistake at the hairpin corner on his second run resulted in him abandoning the lap and finishing in sixth place.
McLaren opted for two soft tire runs in SQ3, while Ferrari chose only one.
‘I made a mistake,’ Norris admitted. ‘I locked up in the last corner.
‘We just struggled a bit more now, just not quick enough, simply. Struggled a lot with the car. Just our difficulties that we’ve been struggling with showed a lot more today.
‘So, nothing more than that, honestly. Just too many mistakes but just too difficult of a car to drive.’
Chinese GP Sprint Qualifying Top 10:
- Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
- Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- Oscar Piastri, McLaren
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- George Russell, Mercedes
- Lando Norris, McLaren
- Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes
- Yuki Tsunoda, Racing Bulls
- Alex Albon, Williams
- Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
