Hamilton beats the field and Ferrari in the rain at Budapest
Thursday 6 December 2018 12:37, UK
An ecstatic Lewis Hamilton described his pole position at the Hungarian GP as a "shock" and "special" after Mercedes took advantage of the wet conditions to outpace Ferrari.
Ferrari were the favourites coming into the qualifying session but a torrential downpour caused chaos, and though Kimi Raikkonen had provisional pole, a superb final lap from Hamilton saw him finish on pole ahead of team-mate Valtteri Bottas and the lead Ferrari.
"As I went into the last lap I knew I had to piece together each sector and really pull something special out," said Hamilton, who was two tenths faster than Bottas and more than half a second ahead of Raikkonen.
"The positioning on the track... I couldn't be happier with it. It's quite a shock really."
Hamilton on pole, Vettel just fourth
Ferrari and Sebastian Vettel had started qualifying as the overwhelming favourites to take pole position but a sudden rain shower presented Hamilton with an opportunity he was determined to capitalise on.
"You only get certain moments in life and you can never get them back and as I was going through that lap I was thinking 'it's now or never'," he said.
"Maybe next year I'd have another chance to come and drive this track, but not at this particular time, at this stage - I'll never be in this position again. It's not like your life depends on it but everything you work for comes to that moment. The amount of pressure there is huge."
After qualifying, former world champion Damon Hill was effusive in his praise of Hamilton, tweeting: "Well, I dread saying anything for fear of it being insufficiently lavish. But here goes; great driving again by Lewis Hamilton showing them all who's boss in the wet. But they all are amazing in these conditions. Just not as amazing as HAM."
Asked in the post-session press conference whether their performances had proved Hamilton was a better driver than title rival Vettel, Hamilton replied: "I know the answer to that question but it's for you and the public to judge that.
"All I can do is try and be the best I can be every single time I get on track. Regardless of everyone's opinion, the results will speak for themselves. In such tricky conditions and under such pressure today, hopefully the more and more I do on a day like this it may change people's thought process."
