Stroll takes Turkish GP pole
A rare sight in Formula One qualifying saw recordbreaking Lewis Hamilton struggle and Lance Stroll tame a treacherous track to claim his first pole position on Saturday.
Not only did Hamilton miss out on a 98th career pole, the championship leader qualified only sixth at the Turkish Grand Prix as his Mercedes skidded around on a resurfaced and rain-soaked circuit not used in F1 since 2011.
“The track feels terrible, it’s just like driving on ice,” he said. “This whole weekend has been a nightmare, the grip’s so poor.”
Mercedes is so dominant that Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas took pole in the previous 13 races. This time, Bottas was ninth.
The day belonged to Stroll, a much-criticized driver because his billionaire father owns the Racing Point team and because of poor recent form.
Since clinching the second podium of his career at the Italian GP in early September, Stroll failed to finish three straight races and placed 13th in the other.
“It’s such a great way to bounce back after a few rough weeks,” said Stroll, who had the coronavirus last month. “I haven’t scored a point since my podium in Monza. It’s been a rough run, with incidents and COVID. So much has been going on.”
The Canadian driver showed his ability in the wet by placing .3 seconds ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and 1.56 ahead of Racing Point teammate Sergio Perez.
“A special moment for me,” Stroll said. “The highlight of my career.”
Red Bull’s Alexander Albon finished fourth followed by Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo, while both Ferraris failed to make it into Q3 – Sebastian Vettel was 12th place and Charles Leclerc 14th.
ETC.
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