Lewis Hamilton expressed his shock at achieving pole position for Saturday`s sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix. This is only his second race weekend with Ferrari.
The seven-time world champion outperformed Max Verstappen by a narrow margin of 0.018 seconds. Lando Norris, who was initially quicker, made a mistake at Turn 14, ending up in sixth place.
This result marks a significant improvement for Hamilton after finishing tenth in the previous Australian Grand Prix. He seemed genuinely surprised by his car`s performance.
“I didn`t anticipate this result,” Hamilton admitted. “I`m incredibly happy and proud. The last race was a disaster for us, but we knew the car had more potential. We just couldn`t unlock it.”
“Coming to Shanghai, a track I love, with beautiful weather, the car felt fantastic from the start.”
“I wasn`t sure when we`d reach this position, especially after a tough start to the week following the last race. I came here wanting to be aggressive and get the car in a good place. I immediately felt better in the car and I`m amazed we`re at the front,” he said.
“The team made excellent changes during the break to prepare the car. I`m still a bit in shock that we got pole for the sprint race.”
“It`s not the main race, so we still have work to do for tomorrow. But this is a positive start for the race.”
Hamilton mentioned he had setup changes in mind to improve his Ferrari`s performance. He was surprised by the improvement after qualifying.
“I`m not sure what exactly made the difference. I need to review it. My first sector was particularly strong, I think that`s where I gained the most time.”
“But it was small improvements everywhere. There`s still more time to find, which I`ll aim for in the next qualifying. It`s amazing to see number one on the timing screen in the red car. It`s incredible.”
Hamilton mentioned that the sprint race would be his first experience driving the Ferrari in dry race conditions, as preseason issues prevented a dry race simulation and the previous race was wet.
“I didn`t get a race simulation in Bahrain, and the last race was wet,” Hamilton explained. “So tomorrow will be my first longer run or race run, and Sunday will be my first proper dry race with this car.”
“I hope we can maintain this position, but McLaren and Max are very fast. We are in a good position. We`ll remain positive and keep pushing.”
Ferrari`s Charles Leclerc, who will start fourth, commented, “I struggled on my side of the garage. Lewis was just faster today. I struggled in Turns 1, 2, 3, similar to last year. It`s a shame to start P4, but Lewis is on pole, and hopefully, we can have a good race tomorrow.”
Rupert Caldwell 
Tristan Blackwood