Saturday: Hamilton gave everything for pole position with McLaren
After pushing his McLaren to the absolute limit, Lewis Hamilton had to admit defeat in his battle for pole position with Sebastian Vettel. Meanwhile, Jenson Button experienced another mechanical issue during Q2, preventing him from reaching Q3.
Lewis Hamilton – 2nd and 2nd:
« I came here to push to the limit, and this approach seems to work in qualifying. I gave it my all. I did two consecutive fast laps and, on my second lap, I really had nothing to lose, so I nearly went over the limit, really just barely, but the car seemed to handle it well. In the last corner, I gained a tiny bit of time on entry but lost it on exit. I took every corner perfectly except the last one, I admit.
I can’t wait for tomorrow; turn 1 is very wide and there are many opportunities for drivers to gain or lose positions. My side of the track will be a bit dirty because it’s off the racing line, so I hope the officials will clean the circuit on that side, so the drivers on the inside have a chance to maintain their positions at the start.
Jenson Button – 10th and 12th:
It was really a shame to be out of the qualifiers so early. We had an accelerator pedal problem – the engineers don’t know why yet – but I suffered a loss of power on the track. Fortunately, I did a pretty decent fast lap in Q2, which was good enough for 12th place, otherwise I would have started even further back.
This circuit is quite fun to drive, but it won’t be easy to overtake. Getting to turn 1 won’t be easy at the start either, especially starting from so far back. I really hope we put on a great show for all the American fans: it’s great to see so many people loving this sport.
