F1 News: Hamilton loses pole position after CONTROVERSIAL stewards call

Lewis Hamilton looks glum as FIA flag flies behind — Photo: © IMAGO

Chinese Grand Prix

Hamilton loses pole position after CONTROVERSIAL stewards call

The Mercedes driver thought he had done enough to secure pole for Saturday's Sprint Race in Shanghai

Originally written by Sam Cook. This version is a translation.

Friday 19 April 2024 15:00

Lewis Hamilton had pole position snatched away from him after every driver had already crossed the line during sprint qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix.

In a chaotic, wet session, the result was completely up in the air, with multiple drivers all taking top spot throughout SQ3, but a stunning lap by Hamilton had put the seven-time world champion at the front for Saturday's sprint race.

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However, Lando Norris, who had originally put in a lap that was over a second better than Hamilton's effort but had it deleted for a track limits infringement, ended up on pole after an unusual u-turn from the race stewards.

Just as Hamilton was getting ready to celebrate his first pole position for any race since the Hungarian GP 2023, the stewards announced that they had reinstated Norris' previous lap time.

Lando Norris took pole for Saturday's sprint race

Lewis Hamilton was robbed of pole after the chequered flag

Fires and rain mar Chinese GP Friday

The wet weather, which led to normally supreme qualifiers Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen both heading off the circuit and only managing seventh and fourth respectively, wasn't the only disruption to the exciting sprint qualifying session.

SQ1 saw a fire break out on track, in the same area as a fire that caused Friday practice to be red flagged, on the entrance to turn seven.

The grass fires were likely to be caused by sparks flying off the skidblocks of the Formula 1 cars in that particular, high speed, section of the track, as revealed by pundit Ted Kravitz.

While the rain helped with this problem, it certainly didn't put a dampener on the enthralling session, with Norris now set to line up on pole for the sprint race with three multiple-time world champions behind him in Hamilton, Fernando Alonso and Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton McLaren Lando Norris FIA Chinese Grand Prix Hungarian GP