Lewis Hamilton Secures Mercedes A Surprise Pole Position For Hungarian Grand Prix

Britain’s Lewis Hamilton sprung a surprise during the qualifying session this Saturday, July 22, for the Hungarian Grand Prix by placing his Mercedes in pole position.

Pole number 1️⃣0️⃣4️⃣ in @F1. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/sTeunb9wdu

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) July 22, 2023

The six-time world champion wound the clock back and pulled a stunning drive out of the bag to relegate Max Verstappen to second place on tomorrow’s starting grid at the Hungaroring in Budapest, denying the Dutchman a seventh consecutive pole.

In the process, he secured a record-breaking ninth pole position in Hungary, his first since Saudi Arabia in 2021, and the 38-year-old’s 104th of his glittering F1 career. As he crossed the line on the final lap, Hamilton was heard shouting across the team radio: ‘Get in there, let’s go boys’.

“It’s been a crazy year and a half. I’ve lost my voice from shouting so much in the car! It’s amazing that feeling. I feel so grateful to be up here because the team have worked so hard. We have been pushing so hard over this time to get pole. It feels like the first time’, a jubilant Hamilton said after the session.

“GET IN THEREEEE!!!”

That one meant a lot! 🙏pic.twitter.com/9hGOioiw4R

— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) July 22, 2023

One can only begin to surmise if the new format introduced for this round of the FIA calendar had some impact on the final standings.

The drivers were all forced to use the same tyre compound

Although the Brit only beat the current champion by 0.003 seconds, maybe the controversial decision to force every driver to use the same tyre compound was a deciding factor in the end.

Lando Norris brought the McLaren home in third, followed by his Australian teammate Oscar Piastri in fourth spot. Zhou Guanyu excelled in the Alfa Romeo to clinch fifth place, with his teammate Valtteri Bottas also grabbing seventh.

Sandwiched in between the two Alfa Romeos on Sunday will be Ferrari driver Charles LeClerc. The Frenchman will start from sixth place.

Spain’s Fernando Alonso continued his fine run of form in the Aston Martin to hold off the other Red Bull of Sergio Perez and take eighth on the grid. Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the Top 10 in the Haas.

In his first drive back in F1 after replacing Dutch driver Nyck de Vries at Alpha Tauri, the Australian veteran Daniel Ricciardo out-qualified his teammate Yuki Tsunoda to take a superb 13th spot.