Canada pole means 'extra' to Vettel

Sebastian Vettel says taking pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix "means extra" after he snapped a 17-year drought without Saturday success for Ferrari at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Vettel lowered the circuit lap record to one minute 10.764 seconds to take pole ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen.

Sebastian Vettel says taking pole position for the Canadian Grand Prix "means extra" after he snapped a 17-year drought without Saturday success for Ferrari at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Vettel lowered the circuit lap record to one minute 10.764 seconds to take pole ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Max Verstappen.

Ferrari had not taken pole position in Canada since Michael Schumacher in 2001, with Mercedes - and especially Lewis Hamilton - dominating in Montreal in recent years.

However, Hamilton could only qualify fourth, missing out on taking a record seventh Canada pole and preserving a share of the record for Schumacher for another year at least.

Schumacher's record seven wins in Canada is also in sight of Hamilton (6) and Vettel says Ferrari's pedigree in Canada - including a maiden win for the legendary Villeneuve - adds extra motivation.

"I crossed the line and wasn't sure if it was going to be enough. It was a big relief when I heard it was enough," Vettel said.

"Being on pole here with Ferrari means something extra. The Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Gilles is huge for Ferrari, and Canada is linked to that name. It's a great result. There are a lot of Ferrari fans, probably a lot of them from back then as well when they were kids.

"So it's great to carry momentum we've had in qualifying so far this year, even though the last race was a little bit less so. It's great when you have a session like that."

Looking ahead to Sunday's race, Vettel believes Red Bull might have erred in choosing the hypersoft tyre to start on. The Ferraris and Mercedes will all start on the more durable ultrasoft, although Red Bull could have a grip advantage off the line.

Asked if the Scuderia had considered a similar switch to the pink compound, Vettel said: "No, no. It was a very smooth session for us.

"We were briefly talking about what we wanted to do, trying to figure everything out.

"For me it was pretty straightforward, and in terms of strategy we did what we wanted to do.

"I don't think the hypersoft is a good race tyre. I'm a bit surprised that both of the Red Bulls chose that, but I guess they have their reasons."