Lewis Hamilton ‘ecstatic’ after securing ‘surprise’ Sprint race pole at British Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton has reacted to his Sprint qualifying session after securing a stunning pole position at Silverstone. 

On Friday, the 41-year-old kicked off the British Grand Prix weekend with an impressive performance during Free Practice 1.

Hamilton secured P1 with a brilliant lap, putting him ahead of Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc.

The seven-time world champion’s early momentum continued into Sprint qualifying as he was well in contention for pole position alongside the likes of Antonelli, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc.

In the end, it was Hamilton who secured Sprint pole position ahead of Antonelli, with Verstappen securing P3, and Leclerc had to settle for P4.

Who will be Lewis Hamilton’s biggest competition for the British GP Sprint race win?

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Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari ‘did not expect’ front row battle at Silverstone

After what was a stunning lap cheered on by the home crowd, Hamilton was unsurprisingly ecstatic when he returned to Parc Ferme.

Speaking to Naomi Schiff, Hamilton revealed that he was ‘surprised’ by his Silverstone Sprint pole.

He stated that Ferrari will not ‘let up’ and will continue ‘pushing’ for the best results.

However, Hamilton did warn that ‘it won’t always be like this’, claiming that the team did not ‘expect’ to be competing for the front row at Silverstone.

Hamilton said, as reported by Sky Sports F1: “We’re ahead of a Mercedes and the Red Bull, they have so much power, these guys. They’ve been doing amazing all year, the boys in blue (Mercedes) this weekend, these champs.

“But my team won’t let up, they’ll keep pushing, and that’s what I’m so proud of. It won’t always be like this, but we didn’t expect coming to Silverstone that we’d be competing for the front row; we really, really didn’t.

“So, this is an amazing surprise. I’m ecstatic.”

READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton takes British GP Sprint pole ahead of Kimi Antonelli as George Russell struggles

Lewis Hamilton admits British Grand Prix Sprint victory is ‘not so easy’

Hamilton went on to reveal what his prospects are for the Sprint race and the remainder of the British Grand Prix weekend.

The seven-time world champion was quick to say that his SF-26 ‘felt good’ and predicted a ‘good race’ for tomorrow.

However, Hamilton did admit that it will not be easy with the fast-paced Mercedes of Antonelli’s and Verstappen in the Red Bull just behind him.

Hamilton added: “I think our pace was good. We did a short sort of longish run in practice; there wasn’t a lot of time. But the car felt good there, so I think we should have a good race tomorrow.

“I mean, starting from the front row, I don’t remember the last time I started from the front row here. Not so easy when you’ve got these guys that can follow you and be close with the extra power potentially, but I’ll do my best to keep them behind.”