Lewis Hamilton will start Sunday's Formula One Spanish Grand Prix at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from the front row of the grid after setting the pace in the qualifying race yesterday. The Mercedes driver edged out Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel by just 0.051s to take the pole, which was also his third of the season.
Hamilton, who is sitting at the second spot in Driver Standings with 73 points, 13 behind Vettel, has sealed a crucial pole position to cut down on the gap at the top, especially after he was denied a podium finish in Russia.
Hamilton came up with an impressive timing of 1:19.149s in Q1, but failed to improve on it in the next two runs. However, Vettel could not capitalise on it as he missed a braking point in the last corner in the final run, which cost him a second pole of the season and left him disappointed.
On the other hand, Russian Grand Prix winner Valtteri Bottas finished third, 0.173s behind Vettel, whose teammate Kimi Raikkonen finished fourth with 1:19.439s. Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Daniel Ricciardo will start from the third row of the grid after sealing a 5-6 finish on Saturday.
However, the most impressive performer in the qualifying race was McLaren's Fernando Alonso, who edged out Force India and Williams racers to secure a seventh place in his home race.
Hamilton benefits from Mercedes' upgrade
After finishing second behind Vettel in Bahrain, Hamilton ended up with a disappointing fourth-place in Russia. However, the Brit looked in control on Saturday, thanks to the aerodynamic changes Mercedes brought in to his car ahead of the qualifying race.
Despite the strong finish, Vettel was not trailing the Mercedes driver by a large margin and is expected to give a stiff fight to the Brit on Sunday.
Qualifying results from Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix 2017
Lewis Hamilton (GBR) Mercedes - 1:19.149s
Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari - 1:19.200s
Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes - 1:19.273s
Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari - 1:19.439s
Max Verstappen (Nld) Red Bull - 1:19.706s
Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull - 1:20.175s
Fernando Alonso (Esp) Mclaren - 1:21.048s
Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India - 1:21.070s
