Lewis puts his Silver Arrow on pole again
Lewis Hamilton is in the box seat to extend his championship lead after yesterday securing pole position for this afternoon’s French Grand Prix.
The world champion delivered another one-lap masterclass to see off the challenge from Valtteri Bottas in the sister Mercedes. Formula One’s all-conquering team proved the class of the field, yet again, to lock out the front row, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc a distant third, and Sebastian Vettel a miserable seventh.
British teenager Lando Norris finished an impressive fifth, the best qualifying result of his young career. Hamilton, who is 29 points clear of Bottas in the race for his sixth world crown, has won five of the seven rounds staged this season. And the 34-year-old British driver will be expected to add to that tally at the Circuit Paul Ricard today after claiming the 86th pole of his life. Bottas had appeared to hold a slight edge over his team-mate but Hamilton pieced together a fine effort to finish 0.286 seconds clear, improving his laps as the pole shootout wore on.
“I was just chipping away, and the last two laps were the ones,” said Hamilton. “I am happy I got the potential out of the car. “We are all working our butts off. Valtteri had the edge through Q1 and Q2 and I was still dialling in the car, but once I got to Q3 I knew where I had to find the time.
“The first lap was fantastic. I went out for the second run, and was on for one of the best laps I have done for a long time – I was up four-and-a-half tenths – but it is windy out there and I lost the back end through the penultimate corner. “I am grateful to be where I am. It is going to be a close race.”
For Vettel, his underwhelming campaign hit a new low after he could manage only seventh. The four-time world champion, 62 points behind Hamilton in the standings, lost control of his Ferrari through the chicane and had to abort his opening flying lap. He failed to hook up a second lap, and crossed the line 1.4 sec slower than Hamilton, and behind both Mclarens.
Carlos Sainz finished sixth in the sister Mclaren to Norris, with both orange cars within striking distance of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Indeed, Norris was just nine thousandths behind Verstappen on a day he is unlikely to forget in a hurry.