Mercedes’ British driver Lewis Hamilton took the pole position after he finished on top, clocking 1:30.076 in the qualifying race of the Malaysian Grand Prix on Saturday.
It was Hamilton’s 70th career pole position, his ninth of 2017 Formula One calendar and fifth in Malaysia.
Top 10 in the qualifying:
🏁 END OF QUALIFYING 🏁
TOP TEN
HAM 📸
RAI
VER
RIC
BOT
OCO
VAN
HUL
PER
ALO#MalaysiaGP 🇲🇾 #Quali #F1 pic.twitter.com/NJr52t348q— Formula 1 (@F1) September 30, 2017
Ferrari’s Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen finished second at 1:30.121, while Red Bull driver Max Verstappen came third with a timing of 1:30.541.
India’s lone F1 team Force India came out in flying colours as its drivers –Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez—were featured in top 10.
Ocon finished sixth at 1:31.478, while Perez clocked 1:31.658 to conclude ninth.
Among all, German driver Sebastian Vettel couldn’t make much of opportunities in Sepang. The 30-year-old Ferrari driver, who is Hamilton’s title rival this season, was forced to withdraw in the Q1.
“We had no idea how it was going to go – and I’m sorry for what happened to Seb. But we turned it around and I’m grateful,” Hamilton said in the post-match ceremony.
Initial Classification (End of Qualifying):
INITIAL CLASSIFICATION (END OF QUALIFYING): Confirmation of an incredible turnaround by @LewisHamilton #MalaysiaGP 🇲🇾 #Quali #F1 pic.twitter.com/ENum47cARD
— Formula 1 (@F1) September 30, 2017