Hamilton claims pole position for Shanghai sprint race with Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton secured pole position for the Sprint Race at the Chinese Grand Prix, setting a new track record with a time of 1:30.849. The seven-time world champion edged out Max Verstappen by just 18 thousandths of a second in an exciting qualifying session at the Shanghai International Circuit.

Hamilton Finds His Rhythm with Ferrari

"It was incredible! I'm really happy with the result," Hamilton commented after the session. "We knew there was more in the car after Australia, and here it just came alive from the first lap. The team has done a great job since Melbourne."

This is Hamilton's second Sprint pole position, as he seems to have found his comfort in the SF-25 after a difficult debut with Ferrari in Melbourne. The British driver, who has six poles and six previous victories in Shanghai, dominated all qualifying sessions, being the fastest in both SQ1 and the decisive SQ3.

McLaren Loses Ground in Final Qualifying

McLaren, which had shown dominance during the previous sessions, couldn't maintain its advantage when it mattered most. Oscar Piastri secured third place, 0.080 seconds behind Hamilton, while Lando Norris was relegated to sixth after making mistakes in both attempts of his fast lap.

Charles Leclerc will start in fourth place with the other Ferrari, completing a good day for the Italian team, which will have both cars in the first two rows of the grid.

Teams and Drivers Prepare for an Intense Weekend

The Sprint format makes Saturday especially active for all teams. After the morning Sprint Race (11:00 local time, 04:00 CET), parc fermé conditions are lifted, allowing teams to prepare the cars for the main Grand Prix qualifying.

The 19-lap Sprint Race will be an opportunity for teams to evaluate long-run pace, especially with the new track surface, which has so far provided excellent grip but also increased tire stress.

Fred Vasseur, Ferrari team principal, expressed his satisfaction with the result: "We are clearly happy with this afternoon's result. After a difficult qualifying last week in Australia, today's performance is a boost for the entire team."

Mercedes and the Rest of the Field

The Mercedes of George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished fifth and seventh respectively, while Yuki Tsunoda, Alex Albon, and Lance Stroll rounded out the top 10. Fernando Alonso will start from eleventh place in his Aston Martin.

Oliver Bearman had a standout performance with Haas, qualifying in twelfth place, ahead of Carlos Sainz, Gabriel Bortoleto, and Isack Hadjar. Liam Lawson, in the second Red Bull, finished last after his lap time was deleted.

Complete Sprint Race Qualifying Results in Shanghai

Position	Driver	Team	Time	Difference
1	L. Hamilton	Ferrari	1'30.849	-
2	M. Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1'30.867	+0.018
3	O. Piastri	McLaren	1'30.929	+0.080
4	C. Leclerc	Ferrari	1'31.057	+0.208
5	G. Russell	Mercedes	1'31.169	+0.320
6	L. Norris	McLaren	1'31.393	+0.544
7	A. Antonelli	Mercedes	1'31.738	+0.889
8	Y. Tsunoda	Racing Bulls	1'31.773	+0.924
9	A. Albon	Williams	1'31.852	+1.003
10	L. Stroll	Aston Martin Racing	1'31.982	+1.133
11	F. Alonso	Aston Martin Racing	1'31.815	+0.966
12	O. Bearman	Haas F1 Team	1'31.978	+1.129
13	C. Sainz	Williams	1'32.325	+1.476
14	G. Bortoleto	Sauber	1'32.564	+1.715
15	I. Hadjar	Racing Bulls	-	-
16	J. Doohan	Alpine	1'32.575	+1.726
17	P. Gasly	Alpine	1'32.640	+1.791
18	E. Ocon	Haas F1 Team	1'32.651	+1.802
19	N. Hulkenberg	Sauber	1'32.675	+1.826
20	L. Lawson	Red Bull Racing	1'32.729	+1.880