Spin to British GP F1 pole was “hardest turnaround” – Hamilton

Lewis Hamilton says bouncing back from a spin in Q2 to claim pole position for Formula 1’s British Grand Prix was the “hardest turnaround”.

The six-times world champion recovered from causing a red flag in the second part of qualifying after spinning at Luffield to claim the 91st pole of his career, and his seventh at Silverstone.

Hamilton had trailed Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas in final practice and throughout Q1 and Q2, but turned the tables on his title rival to clinch a third straight pole by over three-tenths of a second.

"It really wasn't a nice qualifying session for me," Hamilton explained.

"I had this inconsistency with the balance of the car, I was struggling. I got into Q2 and had that big snap and spin, which is my first spin in some time.

"Luckily the tyres were fine, but then we came in and I went back out on another fresh set, which was just fine.

"Then it's just really trying to recompose yourself and get yourself back aligned, because it's about building, just building blocks when you go through qualifying.

"That was probably the hardest turnaround I would say, knowing that Valtteri had just been putting in quick lap after quick lap. So to go into Q3 with a fresh reset mentally and put in those two laps, I feel great.

"Valtteri has been pushing all weekend, he was incredibly quick here,” he added.

"I think I had a tenth and a half advantage to him after the first lap, and I knew that he would pick up some pace in that second run, so the pressure was still on to go out and do better."

Hamilton led Mercedes’ latest front-row lockout at Silverstone as the German manufacturer dominated qualifying, with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen finishing a full second down in third place.

"It's pretty incredible, the performance here," Hamilton said.

"This track is really one of the best tracks in the world, especially when the wind is right like today, and the temperatures are just right.

"This team is remarkable. I'm incredibly grateful to this team who continue to do a great job back at the factory, and also here during the weekends. Bit by bit we continue to step forwards.

"We're still powering ahead, we're not resting on the performance that we have, we're trying to push the boundaries and the limits. That's the most impressive thing about this team."