Lewis Hamilton labelled his British Grand Prix pole lap as “one of the best laps" as he edged his Ferrari opponents to grab top spot for his home event.
Hamilton trailed Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel after the first Q3 runs and also faced a threat from Kimi Raikkonen, who has emerged as the Briton’s closest challenger in the final practice session.
Hamilton went first for his final Q3 push lap and edged ahead of Vettel by just 0.044s – and the German was unable to respond, while Raikkonen also drifted away from Hamilton’s time.
It secured Hamilton his fourth straight British Grand Prix pole, and sixth overall, breaking the previous record held by Jim Clark.
“For me it feels like one of the best laps that I’ve been able to produce,” said Hamilton.
“I would say it felt like the most pressurised lap that I’ve ever had. And then afterwards I was just… I can’t tell you how… I was shaking through the emotion.
“The adrenaline rush was way above the limit that I had experienced before, which is kind of crazy for my 76th [pole]. But the 76th is so special.”
Expanding on the threat posed by Ferrari, Hamilton said: “These guys really pulled something special into Q3. I don’t know what they did yesterday, but they’ve come so strong today.
“I knew we were up against it but to really put together the laps was the hardest I can remember it being.
“It’s such a technical circuit and such a tricky circuit and to really position the car in the right place and get the maximum from the tyres it took everything from me to get it.
“But the fans were there and I could see them.
“Ferrari obviously have picked up a lot of pace this weekend, but we're in the best position we can be and our long run pace was good yesterday, so I’m excited for a close race tomorrow.”
