Hamilton: "Red Bull is on another level here, so thankful"

December 4, 2021

Hamilton managed a lap at the end of Q3 that gave him provisional pole, but he was aware that his last attempt was yet to be made by his title rival, Max Verstappen. However the Dutchman, who broke the record in the first two sectors, ended up hitting the wall, giving the Briton his 103rd pole position in Formula 1.

The man from Mercedes was delighted with that unbeatable position on a circuit where it seems difficult to overtake, and he will face the penultimate start of the year with no one in front of him, with his eyes set on a victory that could give him the leadership of the world championship.

“Wow, what a difficult track this is,” he said as soon as he got out of the car. “It’s incredibly technical and complex. It’s amazing what they’ve built here, the speed and pace is phenomenal.”

Verstappen surprised by being fastest in the third practice session, and Hamilton failed to lead either Q1 or Q2. But at the moment of truth, and after getting rid of a penalty for a possible double infringement in FP3, Hamilton will start first: “We were fast in practice, but for some reason in FP3 and especially in qualifying, we lacked pace. And we suffered with the tires.

“And so to get a one-two… I’m really proud of Valtteri, and the guys, the men and the women in our team who have done such a hard job. So yeah, this is a great, great result. “.

To make Mercedes more proud, his teammate Valtteri Bottas was second, playing the perfect role of squire (his rival’s teammate, Sergio Pérez, did not even finish fourth).

When asked if they had worked as a team, the seven-time champion revealed that they had been side by side looking for the best setup for the car: “Yes, this was the goal. We have worked very hard with the simulation, with the configuration of the car. The collaboration “It’s been just epic with Valtteri. He’s clearly the best teammate to ever exist in the sport. And we’ve worked together to create the best set-up and get the car where it needs to be.”

Hamilton considers that pole was very difficult to achieve seeing the pace of the Red Bull: “Those guys were very fast: that ‘bull’ on this track is something else. But given where we are, I am grateful for what we managed to get out of what we have”.

Finally, pondering if that energy drink speed worries him for Sunday, I reply, “Well, we always get closer in race pace. I think my long run was good on Friday, but you know, they obviously they picked something, whatever it is, and they are fast. So I think it will be an even battle tomorrow. But Valtteri and I will be there.”

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton celebrates at Parc Ferme after taking pole