Lewis Hamilton warned he’s ready for whatever the elements throw at him after qualifying more than a second faster than his closest rival to take pole at the Styrian Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver returns to the front row of the grid after a penalty at last weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix saw him demoted down to fifth.
“The weather’s obviously incredibly difficult out there for all of us and, a lot of the time, you can’t even see where you’re going. I had one big moment – I think, the lap before the last – a big aquaplane, where I definitely had my heart in my mouth.
“I improved on the next lap, nice and clean. I love these days. You remember when we used to race back [the junior days]. It was like this but, obviously, 100 times worse when you’re in a Formula 1 car.”
Mercedes quickly got to the bottom of what disrupted Hamilton in FP3 and he’s confident his W11 can shine in the sun on Sunday.
“Yesterday was a difficult day, it started off well in P1 but then P2 was a big issue for us,” Hamilton said. “But we’ve discovered [the problem] overnight and [it’s] nothing major.
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“I think today would have been better for us if it had been dry but I’m grateful for the rain, always. But I know tomorrow’s going to be a much more sunny day.
“I think we’re prepared for both conditions and [on pole is] where I want to start, so I’m glad that it was a trouble free session and I didn’t make any mistakes. That’s always a positive.”
Carlos Sainz will start Sunday’s Styrian Grand Prix third on the grid, with Hamilton’s Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas alongside the McLaren ace.
Renault’s Esteban Ocon and Verstappen’s Red Bull team-mate Alex Albon will make up third row, with Daniel Ricciardo, Pierre Gasly, Lando Norris and Sebastian Vettel completing the top 10.
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