Lewis Hamilton put in a stunner of a performance on Friday, smashing the Shanghai lap record to claim pole for the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race, MySportDab Reports.
The seven-time world champion set an incredible 1:30.849 around the re-surfaced 5.451km Shanghai International Circuit, beating Red Bull’s Max Verstappen by just 0.018 seconds.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri rounded out the top three, while Hamilton’s teammate Charles Leclerc at Ferrari crossed in fourth. Mercedes’ George Russell was fifth and title leader Lando Norris, who was forced to abandon his final flying lap, sixth.
Hamilton was visibly emotional as he was released from his Ferrari to a huge ovation from the Shanghai crowd, having taken a record sixth Chinese Grand Prix victory. “I’m in a little bit of shock,” he said. “I’m surprised we got pole for the sprint. It puts us in a good place for the race.”
De Vries was followed by Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), Yuki Tsunoda (RB), Alex Albon (Williams) and Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) in the remaining top-10 spots.
SQ1 and SQ2 both mandated that all cars run medium-compound tyres. Red Bull’s Liam Lawson had a tough time, making it no further than SQ1 after exceeding track limits and finishing 20th, at the back.
In SQ1, Alpine’s Jack Doohan and Pierre Gasly, Haas’ Esteban Ocon and Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg were also eliminated. Fernando Alonso joined SQ2 in 11th place, missing the top-10 shootout and lining up alongside Haas’ Oliver Bearman, Williams’ Carlos Sainz, Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto and RB’s Isack Hadjar.
The first event is an abbreviated 19-lap sprint race on Saturday morning, then comes qualifying for Sunday’s 56-lap Chinese Grand Prix, which is sure to set the tone for an exciting weekend.
