MELBOURNE // Lewis Hamilton spoke of his pride on Saturday in matching boyhood hero Nigel Mansell’s British record of 32 pole positions after a dramatic day of qualifying at the Australian Grand Prix.
Hamilton, who also claimed the milestone 100th pole position for Mercedes, snatched the top qualifying time in the dying seconds and said it was “incredible” to equal the mark of the 1992 world champion.
“Another Brit, one of the greatest British drivers we had and he achieved so much,” Hamilton said.
“I’ve been racing since my eighth year, so to be in Formula One has always been my dream but to get to as many poles as him is an incredible achievement.
“I owe that to all the great people I’ve worked with through my career at McLaren-Mercedes and now Mercedes and the team, and my family and the good people I have around me.”
Hamilton qualified just ahead of Red Bull’s home favourite Daniel Ricciardo, with his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg third.
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Mercedes executive director Toto Wolff said Hamilton and Rosberg had put the team in position to go after maximum points in today’s season-opener.
“The points are won on Sunday and we know that it will be a tough race in terms of fuel consumption and reliability,” Wolff said.
Ricciardo now gets the chance to win his home grand prix, a feat that eluded retired compatriot Mark Webber, when he lines up alongside Hamilton.
“To start the season with a front row does a lot of good things for the confidence,” Ricciardo said.
“But it’s just the start and I have to race tomorrow and try to finish up the order and see how the season progresses, but the last couple of days have been really positive for us.
“I’m really excited, but at the same time still staying calm and collected because tomorrow is what counts so there’s no point having a party tonight and not focusing on tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, Red Bull Racing were left puzzling over an engine software problem that left world champion Sebastian Vettel struggling in qualifying and endangered his bid for a record 10th consecutive win.
The German missed the top 10 starting grid positions for the first time since Abu Dhabi in 2012.
The problem with the software related to his Red Bull’s Renault engine badly affected the car’s performance in difficult, wet conditions at Melbourne’s Albert Park.
Vettel’s attempt to reach the final stage of qualifying was hit when Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen went off in Q2, meaning the cars behind him were ordered to slow down.
It was a significant setback for Vettel after Red Bull appeared to have overcome serious mechanical issues in pre-season with an encouraging first day of practice on Friday.
Vettel is searching for a fifth straight world title and a record 10 wins in a row, but instead it was his new teammate Ricciardo who will start from the front row on Sunday.
“I think we have made a big step forward with the car, but of course I’m not happy that we didn’t make it to Q3,” Vettel said.
“I think the car is quick, but we struggled this afternoon with driveability which, in these conditions, made it even worse.
“The car seems good and Daniel did a very good job to be on the front row, so congratulations to him.”
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