“P1 of those who kept it on the track?”: Lewis Hamilton fans react furiously as Lando Norris clinches pole at Chinese GP sprint qualifying

Lando Norris managed to snatch the sprint qualifying pole position from Lewis Hamilton at the 2024 F1 Chinese GP.

During the third and final session of sprint qualifying in Shanghai, all 10 drivers struggled to keep their cars on track due to a heavy downpour. Even though they were on intermediate tires, the combination of rain and newly resurfaced tarmac made the track extremely slippery.

Lewis Hamilton was on a flier as he clocked the fastest lap of the session and took the provisional pole for the 2024 F1 season's first sprint race. A few moments later, McLaren's Lando Norris completed his flying lap and went quicker than the seven-time world champion. However, Norris' lap was deleted by the race stewards due to him going out of the track.

Right after the end of the sprint qualifying sessions, however, the McLaren driver's lap was reinstated, allowing Norris to snatch the pole position from Hamilton.

The reason behind the lap deletion confusion was that the timing sensors noted that Norris went off track at the last corner before starting his pole position lap. This prompted the system to delete his subsequent lap as well. Hence, Hamilton stood on the provisional pole till the end of the session, after which Norris' pole lap was reinstated by race stewards.

Since Hamilton lost the pole position despite clocking in an impressive lap at the Chinese GP sprint qualifying, many fans were furious with the result. While some blamed Lando Norris for not keeping the car on track for most of his laps, others discussed that the Mercedes star was robbed of a pole position.

"Lewis is the master! P1 of those who kept it on the track?" a fan wrote.

"Lewis has been stolen again," another chimed in.

"He was robbed," one exclaimed.

On the other hand, some fans were simply delighted to see the seven-time world champion back in the front row for the sprint race. Others also praised his driving skills during the rain.

"There's a reason he's a 7 time Champion. He just showed us," one fan hailed.

"Rain master!" another joined.

"Nice one Lewis!" a follower praised.

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Lewis Hamilton's expectations for the 2024 F1 Chinese GP sprint race

Lewis Hamilton secured second place in the 2024 F1 Chinese GP sprint qualifying session on Friday (April 19). Though the Brit had a provisional pole for a few minutes, Lando Norris eventually took the top spot after his fastest lap was reinstated by the race stewards.

Speaking about the sprint race on Saturday, Hamilton said that a lot would depend on the weather conditions. He believed that if it rains during the sprint race, Mercedes would have a chance to finish ahead.

"It really depends on what the conditions will be. If it's like that, we will have a chance of being somewhere up there. If it's dry, the Ferraris and Red Bulls will come by but maybe we can hold off some of the others," Hamilton said (via Sky Sports).

Lewis Hamilton currently stands in ninth place in the 2024 F1 drivers' championship table with only 10 points.