Hamilton in shock after sprint pole at Chinese GP: ‘I didn't expect that result’

Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool

Lewis Hamilton expressed his disbelief after achieving pole position for Saturday's sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix, in just his second race weekend with Ferrari. The seven-time world champion edged out Max Verstappen by 0.018 seconds. Lando Norris, who was faster than Hamilton in the first two sectors, ran wide at Turn 14 and ended up sixth.

This result was a significant turnaround from Hamilton's tenth-place finish in Australia's season opener. He was visibly surprised by his car's performance. "I didn't expect that result," he admitted. "I'm so happy and proud. The last race was a disaster for us. We knew there was more performance in the car, but we couldn’t extract it.

“To come here to Shanghai, a track I love, with amazing weather, the car came alive from Lap 1. I'm in shock but delighted to get a pole in the sprint. We have work to do for tomorrow, but this puts us in a good place for the main race."

Hamilton hinted at some premeditated setup changes to extract more performance but was still uncertain about the drastic improvement. "My first sector was really strong, and I made little increments throughout," he said. "It's incredible to see the number one and to be in the red car."

Saturday's 19-lap sprint race will be Hamilton's first experience driving the Ferrari in dry conditions. "Tomorrow will be my first long-ish run in the dry, and Sunday my first proper race run," he noted. "McLaren and Max are very fast, but we’re in a good position."

Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc will start fourth on the grid. "I've struggled compared to Lewis. Turns 1, 2, 3 were challenging as they were last year. It's a shame to start P4, but Lewis is on pole, and hopefully, we can have a good race tomorrow," Leclerc said.

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