Thursday 6 December 2018 15:00, UK
A jubilant Sebastian Vettel has set his sights on his first victory at the Hockenheimring after taking a stunning German GP pole position.
The four-time world champion was at his very best on his final lap in Q3 as he outpaced Mercedes' Valtteri Bottas by two tenths of a second, to the delight of his home crowd.
"I felt in Q1 that the car could do it and sometimes you just know," said Vettel, who will start 13 places ahead of Lewis Hamilton after his title rival's hydraulic failure.
Vettel takes super pole, Hamilton woe
Ferrari's power surge stumps rivals
Though Vettel has won a German GP before, at the Nurburgring, he has never triumphed at a Hockenheim track he grew up near - and wants to put that right on Sunday.
"I'd be lying if I said tomorrow is irrelevant, it is important to me and it does mean a lot to me," the championship leader told Sky Sports F1.
"But I'm not too stressed about it. I think it's important to carry that momentum. We'll try to control the things that we can.
"I want to enjoy it and then usually good things will happen."
Bottas and Mercedes accepted that Ferrari had the faster car on Saturday, and their recent engine surge is believed to be worth around three tenths of a second.
Despite Ferrari's impressive pace, Kimi Raikkonen could only manage third on the grid and Vettel knows he must extract the maximum out of every session if he's going to come out on top in the title battle.
"I think we've got a strong car and we know that there's still potential," he continued. "We know also that we have to make sure we unleash it race after race because we still have some weaknesses.
"As a package I think we are competitive, the car is strong, so it's up to us to make use of it everywhere we go.
"That's what we try and today it was a success, but let's try and have another one tomorrow."
Vettel and Ferrari feel for Hamilton
While Vettel flourished at his home race, it was a disastrous session for Hamilton.
The Mercedes driver was forced out of qualifying at the end of Q1 after suffering a loss of hydraulic pressure, dramatically trying to push his car to the pits afterwards.
He is set to start Sunday's race, which is live and exclusive on Sky F1, from 14th on the grid.
"It's never nice to see somebody retiring with a technical issue because there's nothing you are doing wrong at that point from a driving point of view," said Vettel.
And his team boss Maurizio Arrivabene added: "It's a pity for Hamilton. Good sport is when all the fighters are on the track."
