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Lewis Hamilton took a shock pole position at the 2023 F1 Hungarian GP for the first time since his last pole position and win in Saudi Arabia in 2021.
The Mercedes driver surprised everyone with his performance in the Q3 session as he was the closest to challenging Max Verstappen throughout the session. He was quick to pounce on a less-than-satisfactory final lap from the Red Bull driver to get his first pole position in 33 races and start from the front of the grid for the first time this season.
The last time Lewis Hamilton was in pole position was in the penultimate round in that epic 2021 season where he claimed his 103rd pole position and followed it up with this 103rd race win. The inaugural race In Jeddah is remembered as one of the most controversial races of that season and featured one of the most epic battles between Hamilton and Verstappen on that day.
Lewis Hamilton reflects on his pole position in Budapest
The seven-time world champion was overjoyed with his record-breaking ninth pole position at the Hungarian Grand Prix as it came out of the blue for him and the team.
Speaking with F1.com, Lewis Hamilton said:
"It’s been a crazy year-and-a-half, so I’ve lost my voice from shouting so much in the car – it’s amazing that feeling. I feel so grateful to be up here because the team has worked so hard. We’ve been pushing so hard over this time, so to finally get a pole, it feels like the first time. I didn’t expect coming today that we would be fighting for pole, so when I went into that last run, I gave it absolutely everything – there was nothing left in it.”
Lewis Hamilton added:
“[It’s been] massively challenging for everybody in the team. There’s been ups and downs, a big, big rollercoaster ride. But none of us have lost faith. We’ve all just united together. We’re focusing on trying to steer the car in the right direction."
"Today we were losing time in Turns 4 and 11, compared to the others, so I just sent it and hoped that I stayed on track. But it has been tough and it’s going to continue to be tough moving on from here, but I think hopefully this shows we are on the right track and hopefully we can do it if we keep pushing.”
It will be fascinating to see if Lewis Hamilton can convert this pole position into his 104th win on Sunday.
