Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates with team members after he sealed pole position in the Italian Grand Prix
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates with team members after he sealed pole position in the Italian Grand Prix
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates with team members after he sealed pole position in the Italian Grand Prix
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton celebrates with team members after he sealed pole position in the Italian Grand Prix

F1

Formula One: Lewis Hamilton seals record-breaking pole again as Ferrari suffer humiliating day in Italian Grand Prix qualifying

Brit continues his domination of F1 season, while Leclerc and Vettel fail to make the top 10 on home turf at Monza

The National

September 05, 2020

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Six times world champion Lewis Hamilton smashed the Monza track record to take pole position for the Italian Grand Prix with the fastest lap in Formula One history on Saturday.

The Mercedes driver produced a sensational lap of one minute 18.887 seconds on a sunny afternoon to lead Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas in another front row lockout.

McLaren's Carlos Sainz qualified third, with Racing Point's Sergio Perez fourth and a surprisingly uncompetitive Max Verstappen fifth for Red Bull.

The session proved humbling for Ferrari with Sebastian Vettel going out in Q1 and Charles Leclerc in Q2 – the first time since 1984 that the team failed to qualify in the top 10 with either car at Monza.

Leclerc was 13th while Vettel eliminated in the first session, in 17th place, after getting caught in an on-track mix-up as drivers jostled for the perfect position seeking a slipstream.

It was the 94th pole of Hamilton's career – his seventh at Monza – and shattered the idea that a clampdown on so-called engine 'party modes' would affect his team's performance.

If Hamilton turns this into a win, he will just be one race victory behind Michael Schumacher's all-time record of 91.

"It’s not too bad. Fantastic performance from the team," said Hamilton. "Not the easiest, you’ve seen how close it was between us. It needed a clean lap and I got both.

"Valtteri was strong and kept pushing. I was a bit nervous going through the final sector.

"In the years I’ve been here I’ve had times we we had less downforce and grip, the speed through the Lesmos was awesome. It’s trying to finds the right balance which is not so easy."

Bottas, though, remains confident that he can make a race of it. "It was really close, as I was expecting," he said. "In the end I was on my own which is not too bad a place to be but you don't get any gains in a straight line.

"My long run pace compared to Lewis is good. It is going to be a good race tomorrow. It is still all to play for."

Sainz, meanwhile, was delighted with how his McLaren performed.  "I've been feeling strong in qualifying and put in a strong lap," he said.

"The last lap I nearly messed up in Lesmo 1. I'm shaking a bit because at Ascari I had to just go for it.

"I felt like I was nailing Q1 ands Q2 and then Q3, run one I was a bit nervy. I needed a final strong corner. I risked the lot and went for it. Into Ascari I was like 'whoa, that was a bit late.'

"The Renaults I thought would be quicker but this is great."

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Belgian Grand Prix gallery

  • Lewis Hamilton of Britain, center, celebrates after winning the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday, August 30. AP
    Lewis Hamilton of Britain, center, celebrates after winning the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday, August 30. AP
  • Mercedes' driver Lewis Hamilton crosses the finish line to win at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. AFP
    Mercedes' driver Lewis Hamilton crosses the finish line to win at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. AFP
  • Lewis Hamilton pays tribute to the actor Chadwick Boseman who died on Saturday. Reuters
    Lewis Hamilton pays tribute to the actor Chadwick Boseman who died on Saturday. Reuters
  • Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton. AP
    Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton. AP
  • Lewis Hamilton dominated the Belgian GP from start to finish. Getty
    Lewis Hamilton dominated the Belgian GP from start to finish. Getty
  • Valtteri Bottas, of Mercedes, ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen. AFP
    Valtteri Bottas, of Mercedes, ahead of Red Bull's Max Verstappen. AFP
  • Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel finished down in 13th place. Getty
    Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel finished down in 13th place. Getty
  • Renault's Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth. Getty
    Renault's Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth. Getty
  • Lewis Hamilton leads the pack. Getty
    Lewis Hamilton leads the pack. Getty
  • Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc ahead of Renault's Esteban Ocon. AP
    Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc ahead of Renault's Esteban Ocon. AP
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Scoreline

Bournemouth 2

Wilson 70', Ibe 74'

Arsenal 1

Bellerin 52'

Winners

Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)

Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)

Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)

Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)

Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)

Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)

Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)

Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

If you go...

Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).

UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
%3Cp%3EFirst%20ODI%20-%20Sunday%2C%20June%204%20%0D%3Cbr%3ESecond%20ODI%20-%20Tuesday%2C%20June%206%20%0D%3Cbr%3EThird%20ODI%20-%20Friday%2C%20June%209%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMatches%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Stadium.%20All%20games%20start%20at%204.30pm%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMuhammad%20Waseem%20(captain)%2C%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20Adithya%20Shetty%2C%20Ali%20Naseer%2C%20Ansh%20Tandon%2C%20Aryansh%20Sharma%2C%20Asif%20Khan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Ethan%20D%E2%80%99Souza%2C%20Fahad%20Nawaz%2C%20Jonathan%20Figy%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Lovepreet%20Singh%2C%20Matiullah%2C%20Mohammed%20Faraazuddin%2C%20Muhammad%20Jawadullah%2C%20Rameez%20Shahzad%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Sanchit%20Sharma%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”

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Lewis HamiltonF1