LEWIS BREAKS LAP RECORD TO SHADE BOTTAS
LEWIS HAMILTON will start from pole position in today’s Spanish Grand Prix after edging out Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas by just four hundredths of a second.
Hamilton, who holds a four-point championship lead over Sebastian Vettel, delivered a record-breaking lap of the Circuit de Barcelona-catalunya to claim his first pole since the opening round in Australia.
Vettel will line up in third after qualifying 0.132 seconds slower than Hamilton. Kimi Raikkonen finished in fourth place for Ferrari, ahead of the Red Bull duo of Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo.
“It was very close but I am very happy,” Hamilton said. “I needed this pole because I haven’t had one for a while.”
Vettel said: “I was happy with the lap. The first run was not so good, but the last lap felt good. Then I looked where I ended up and I saw that my name didn’t go to the top.
“We expected Mercedes to be strong.”
Mclaren arrived with a series of upgrades and hopeful of turning a corner – and Fernando Alonso ensured a Mclaren car progressed to the final phase of qualifying for the first time this year. He lines up in eighth place with team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne 11th.
Williams head into the race rooted to the foot of the constructors’ championship.
It seems certain they will remain there after Lance Stroll crashed out of qualifying, while Sergey Sirotkin was only one place ahead of him. Stroll touched the gravel at Turn 12 and spun into the barriers.
It marked the third time he has been in the gravel this weekend. “I’ve never seen a Formula One car crash like that on the exit of Turn 12,” said Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle.
Williams will be spared the indignity of seeing both of their cars on the final row of the grid after Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley crashed in final practice.