![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/poster-fallback.png\"\/)
<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so happy, just so happy,\u201d said Hamilton, who on Sunday will seek to add to his record nine wins in his home event\u2019s main race.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t expect we would be competing for the front row so it\u2019s an amazing surprise. I\u2019m ecstatic.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis track is still just phenomenal and so great to drive – and we didn\u2019t have the engine drop-off (in power output) that we had anticipated.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt all goes back to the work of everyone at the factory. They are pushing so hard. Last year, we were in a rut, but this season is so different – we have a real synergy now and we are adding small bit to add performance every week.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd Silverstone is so great – it\u2019s the best track in the world to drive!\u201d <\/p>\n
Lewis Hamilton rolled back the years with a vintage display for Ferrari at Silverstone on Friday.Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Hamilton\u2019s sprint pole is the third of his career and could earn him important points if he wins to boost his bid to win a record eighth drivers\u2019 world title.<\/p>\n
He told a fans event at Silverstone on Friday evening that he would carry on racing until he had achieved that ambition.<\/p>\n
His successor at Mercedes, when he left for Ferrari at the end of 2024, 19-year-old Antonelli, hugged him after qualifying.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was so close between us,\u201d the Italian said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo for me, it is a shame. In SQ1, I felt a bit bad and we made a slight balance adjustment and it was night and day and we were back on the pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the end, there was a little left on the table for my last lap and I was super-close to Lewis… But, of course, congrats to him.\u201d <\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur gave a fired up response to rival Mercedes chief Toto Wolff, who has expressed shock at the speed of upgrades the Italian giant has introduced. <\/p>\n
\u201cI find it quite ironic coming from Toto and Mercedes,\u201d Vasseur said. <\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Red Bull is developing, or when Mercedes is developing, they are a genius – when we are developing, we are cheating.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you have to calm down with this. We didn\u2019t bring more parts than Red Bull or another one – I don\u2019t know if it was a joke!\u201d<\/p>\n
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri of Australia steers his car during the qualifying session for the sprint race at the British F1 Grand Prix, in Silverstone, England, Friday, July 3, 2026. (AP Photo\/Darko Bandic)Source: AP<\/p>\n
– \u2018Things to figure out\u2019 –<\/p>\n
Four-time champion Max Verstappen claimed fourth for Red Bull and said he was \u201chappy with the outcome, but it was very close\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a few things to figure out for more lap time,\u201d said the Dutch driver. \u201cLewis and Kimi look a bit too quick for me.\u201d <\/p>\n
Charles Leclerc qualified fourth in the second Ferrari ahead of George Russell, last Sunday\u2019s winner in Austria, in the second Mercedes.<\/p>\n
\u201cLewis is more often at 100 per cent of the potential of the car, which I\u2019m not,\u201d admitted the Monegasque.<\/p>\n
Russell said: \u201cIt\u2019s the story of my year, to be honest. Always on the back foot. I usually make a step forward in Q3, but not today.\u201d <\/p>\n
Defending champion Lando Norris, who won last year\u2019s British Grand Prix, was sixth ahead of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was unfortunate today,\u201d said Norris, who had damaged his car during practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pace was still there but not enough to compete. It\u2019s cool for the fans to have Lewis P1.\u201d Earlier Vasseur quelled speculation on Hamilton\u2019s future confirming he would stay with Ferrari next year.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe knows the tools, the people and our approach now,\u201d said Vasseur. \u201cAnd with these good results, he\u2019s entered a virtuous circle.\u201d <\/p>\n
BRITISH GP SPRINT QUALIFYING: TOP 10<\/p>\n
1) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari<\/p>\n
2) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes<\/p>\n
3) Max Verstappen, Red Bull<\/p>\n
4) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari<\/p>\n
5) George Russell, Mercedes<\/p>\n
6) Lando Norris, McLaren<\/p>\n
7) Oscar Piastri, McLaren<\/p>\n
8) Isack Hadjar, Red Bull<\/p>\n
9) Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls<\/p>\n
10) Arvid Lindblad, Racing Bulls<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A beaming Lewis Hamilton rolled back the years with a vintage display for Ferrari at Silverstone on Friday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":777678,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[2620,14212,64,63,3159,22777,13275,368625,817,368627,845,813,816,3875,36379,10115,1737,21772,825,20588,16280,368626,20587,368624,85,22784,3586,2836],"class_list":["post-777677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-agence-france-presse","tag-arvid-lindblad","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-austria","tag-championship-leader","tag-charles-leclerc","tag-engine-drop-off","tag-f1","tag-fans-event","tag-fernando-alonso","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-george-russell","tag-home-event","tag-kimi-antonelli","tag-lando-norris","tag-lap-time","tag-max-verstappen","tag-mercedes-benz-ag","tag-pole-position","tag-real-synergy","tag-seven-time-world-champion","tag-slight-balance-adjustment","tag-sports","tag-sprint-pole","tag-united-kingdom","tag-world-title"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=777677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/777677\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/777678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=777677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=777677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=777677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}