Vettel blows his chances to boostHamilton
THE only thing that went even slightly astray for Lewis Hamilton yesterday was missing the slot allocated for the pole-sitter after qualifying.
By the point the Briton had parked up in the adjacent pit lane, celebrating with a vocally-supportive crowd, the title hopes of rival Sebastian Vettel were dripping away as profusely as the sweat on the brows of the Ferrari mechanics who had toiled hard to get his car out in the first place.
Vettel’s engine then gave up on him in the first qualifying session, the power faded, so the German will start last in the Malaysian Grand Prix.
These are crucial weeks in deciding the title’s destiny and everything is falling Hamilton’s way: a ‘miracle’ win in Singapore, yesterday’s unexpected pole, with Japan coming next Sunday. Then, only four rounds to go.
Being Hamilton, it is never plain sailing. For example, he was placed sixth in both Friday practice sessions, ending nearly a second-and-a-half behind Vettel. Hamilton said he hardly slept that night, fretting how to fix the problem. His garage men worked until 2am in search of solutions. By qualifying, having reverted to an old aerodynamic package, he was right back in the picture. But Ferrari were quietly confident they held the edge.
So it took ill fortune to befall Vettel and a brilliant lap from Hamilton to settle pole, a record-extending 70th of a career that glistens more strongly with every turn of the wheel. His advantage over second-quickest Kimi Raikkonen in the other Ferrari was four-hundredths of a second.
‘The pole lap was well put together, a very nice lap,’ said Hamilton, like a man who didn’t know how he had just split the atom. ‘It’s a surprise to be up here, but I’m grateful.’ The sense of relief at Mercedes was palpable. Chairman Niki Lauda put his hand on team principal Toto Wolff’s shoulder and then went to thank the top brains on the pit wall with warm handshakes.
The scene at Ferrari about an hour earlier was very different. Mechanics tried to fit a new engine in Vettel’s car in the two hours between the final practice session and qualifying. The dramas were just beginning.
Vettel got to the fifth turn on his first — and, providentially, final — flying lap when he felt the power go. The turbo could not function, possibly because of the speed at which the previous work was carried out. ‘I’m limping back,’ he told the team.
He made it to the pits and after he shook each of his hard-working team’s hands, he said: ‘The good thing is the car is quick, so we should be able to get back to the leading group. So, you never know.’
Hamilton came from 20th to sixth on this track in 2010. Alongside the Mercedes man on the front row are the two drivers who crashed with Vettel in Singapore: Raikkonen and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Asked what they each wanted from the race, Verstappen said: ‘Not to be in a sandwich,’ a reference to being squeezed by the two Ferraris last time. Raikkonen said: ‘Not to be hit.’ Touche. The first corner offers Vettel an early chance of cutting Hamilton’s 28-point lead.
‘I don’t believe in luck, good or bad,’ said the German, who needs some of the former, and fast.