Lewis Hamilton breaks stunning F1 record with epic pole position

Lewis Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton breaks stunning F1 record with epic pole position

Lewis Hamilton is on pole for the first sprint race of 2025

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Friday 21 March 2025 19:49 Updated: 20:13

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Lewis Hamilton's shock pole position in sprint race qualifying has reinvigorated the fairytale of his Ferrari move and has also seen him break another Formula 1 record in the process.

Six-time Chinese Grand Prix winner Hamilton smashed the lap record with his sprint qualifying lap time, which was enough to beat both McLarens and four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

Hamilton posted a new lap record of 1:30.849 seconds, shaving more than two tenths off Sebastian Vettel's 2018 qualifying time of 1:31.095 seconds, as he became the oldest pole sitter since Nigel Mansell at the 1994 Australian GP.

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The Brit is now 40 years of age, and has had fresh energy breathed into him by the move to Ferrari, as he hunts a record-breaking eighth world title before his career comes to an end.

Hamilton's Shanghai sprint pole shock

Hamilton claimed pole position for the first-ever sprint race at the 2021 British GP, but lost that race to Verstappen, who starts on the front row with him for Saturday's race.

Following a disastrous grand prix debut with Ferrari that saw him pick up just one point from the season-opening Australian GP, Hamilton will be confident he can beat that total this weekend, with two races to go in Shanghai.

On the whole, McLaren still look to have the pace advantage in China, and mistakes from Lando Norris on both of his SQ3 runs prevented him from challenging for pole.

Both Hamilton and Verstappen will be looking over their shoulders during Saturday's sprint race, with Oscar Piastri starting third and Norris down in sixth.

The fairytale storyline that has paired the most successful driver in F1 history with the most successful team on the grid has now seen its first record shattered, with Hamilton now being the proud owner of the all-time lap record around the Shanghai International Circuit.

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Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Sebastian Vettel Chinese Grand Prix Nigel Mansell