Lewis Hamilton’s Unexpected Pole Position in Chinese GP Sprint Qualifying

Lewis Hamilton achieved a remarkable pole position for Saturday’s Sprint race 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 10th, Hamilton rebounded spectacularly. He consistently showed front-running pace throughout Sprint Qualifying at the Shanghai circuit, a venue where he holds the record for six Grand Prix victories.

Despite McLaren being tipped as the favorites, Hamilton had different plans. The seven-time world champion not only outperformed his teammate Charles Leclerc for the first time but also demonstrated superior speed compared to his rivals, securing his first pole position in Ferrari red on only his second attempt.

Hamilton’s pole position is his first in any qualifying format since July 2023 and comes as the 40-year-old driver shows strong form.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri finished third, while Lando Norris, an early title contender, ended up sixth after a mistake on his final lap.

Max Verstappen will start alongside his long-time rival Hamilton on the front row for the Sprint, following another strong performance for 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 secured pole position, a surprised Hamilton responded with enthusiasm: “Really? Hahaha! Mega job. Woo!”

Later, after exiting his car, he added: “I didn’t expect that result but so, so happy and so proud.

“Clearly the last race was a disaster for us but we knew there was more pace in the car.

“I’m a bit shocked. I can’t believe we got a pole in the Sprint!”

While Verstappen secured second, Liam Lawson’s difficult start with Red Bull’s main team worsened as he recorded the slowest time in SQ1.

Lawson, initially just above the elimination line, made a critical error at Turn Nine, going wide and relegating himself to the back of the grid for the Sprint.

George Russell finished fifth for Mercedes, and will share the third row with Norris for the Saturday morning Sprint race.

Kimi Antonelli claimed seventh in the other Mercedes, showing significant improvement in single-lap performance compared to his debut in Melbourne. However, the 18-year-old was still half a second behind Russell in SQ3.

Yuki Tsunoda of Racing Bulls, overlooked for the Red Bull seat that went to Lawson three months prior, qualified in the top 10 again in eighth place. Alex Albon was ninth for Williams, and Lance Stroll edged out Fernando Alonso to place one Aston Martin in the top 10.

British rookie Oliver Bearman delivered an impressive 12th place after a disappointing Melbourne race, finishing six positions ahead of his experienced Haas teammate Esteban Ocon.

Reaction to Hamilton’s First Ferrari 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, Sky Sports F1: “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, Sky Sports F1: “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 Strong Comeback

Shanghai is hosting the first of six Sprint events this season, which includes an additional qualifying session and a shorter race format before the main Grand Prix.

Following Ferrari’s struggles in Melbourne, where the SF-25 underperformed despite promising pre-season tests, Hamilton mentioned on Thursday his intention to test a different car setup this weekend.

Whether due to these adjustments or the Shanghai International Circuit being better suited to the car than Albert Park, Ferrari showed improved competitiveness from the outset. Leclerc finished second and Hamilton fourth in the practice session before Sprint Qualifying.

As the weekend’s first competitive session began in Shanghai, Ferrari’s momentum grew, with Hamilton particularly excelling on a track where he has historically performed well.

The seven-time world champion was fastest by a tenth of a second ahead of Norris in SQ1, fourth in SQ2 led by Norris, and then fastest again in SQ3 as McLaren’s challenge faded unexpectedly.

The qualifying session was tightly contested, with Hamilton’s pole-winning time of 1:30.849 only 0.018 seconds faster than Verstappen and 0.080 seconds quicker than Piastri.

“I’m hoping we can hold onto it [on Saturday] but I think the McLarens are very fast, as is Max,” Hamilton commented 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 three qualifying segments this time. He expressed surprise at Ferrari’s SQ2 tactics when instructed to let Hamilton pass ahead of him during their final out-laps.

Verstappen, who finished second to Norris in the previous race, also expressed surprise at his qualifying result, 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 Qualifying Struggles

Despite McLaren’s apparent early weekend advantage, Norris’s top time in SQ2 suggested he was a strong contender for pole position.

However, the British driver lacked pace in his initial SQ3 run, putting him under pressure. A mistake braking into the hairpin at the penultimate corner forced him to abandon his second attempt, leaving him in sixth place.

McLaren opted for two soft-tyre runs in SQ3, while Ferrari and others 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 Timesheet