Hamilton’s ready to tough out win as he takes pole position
Lewis Hamilton put his car on pole for the 95th time before admitting he is braced for one of the most physically demanding races of his life in today’s Tuscan Grand Prix.
Hamilton beat Valtteri Bottas in the other Mercedes by just 0.059 seconds on Formula One’s first foray to Mugello to take the seventh pole of a campaign which is set to earn the Briton a recordequalling seventh world title.
Ferrari’s test track is being used this weekend as a one-off to commemorate the Italian team’s 1,000th Grand Prix. It has been a miserable year for the Scuderia but they will take some joy in Charles Leclerc starting fifth – less so Sebastian Vettel who qualified a lowly 14th.
For Hamilton, he will move to within just one victory of Michael Schumacher’s record 91 wins – 72 of which the German claimed while racing for Ferrari – should he triumph today.
But the six-time world champion knows it will not be plain sailing at this fast-sweeping 3.26-mile circuit .
Hamilton will be nudging on 5.5G – almost double the force of a launching Space Shuttle – each of the 59 laps he races through Turns 6 to 9 this afternoon. He will pull 5G or greater in seven of the 15 corners.
Mark Webber did not pull any punches when he assessed the challenge ahead.
“Not one driver’s head is going to stay on around that track,” the nine-time grand prix winner said. “Their necks are going to snap in half. It’s so, so quick.”
“We are all athletes and we train but this track is incredibly physical and it is not at all easy to go through that fast section,” said Hamilton, 35.
“I have found that I am breathing heavier because there is so much focus and there is no room for error. The whole body is completely tense and every muscle is fully engaged. We don’t get to the end of a lap with a low heartrate. This track is phenomenal but it is incredibly challenging, too.”
Hamilton was slower than Bottas throughout practice, but, as he so often does, he saved his best for the crunch. He will now start as the favourite to extend his 47-point championship lead over Bottas by winning for the 90th time in his career. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen qualified third.