‘Driving on ice’: Hamilton bursts onto the ‘terrible’ Istanbul track as Stroll achieves pole

British Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton drives during qualifying session at the Intecity Istanbul Park circuit in Istanbul on November 14, 2020 ahead of the Turkish Formula One Grand Prix. (Photo by TOLGA BOZOGLU / POOL / AFP)

Lewis Hamilton described the Turkish Grand Prix track in Istanbul as “terrible” after his first qualifying failure of the year on Saturday when Racing Point’s Lance Stroll, flourishing in the slippery conditions, secured a first career pole.

Six-time champion Hamilton, who is aiming to capture a record-setting seventh world title in Sunday’s race, was only sixth in the standings with his teammate Valtteri Bottas in ninth.

The Finn is the only driver who can prevent the Briton from taking the title again, if he can beat him by eight points or more, but like Hamilton, he fought in treacherous conditions of rain and poor grip.

“There is no grip,” Hamilton said.

“I really don’t know what to say. We did the best we could and that was the fastest we could go.

“The track feels terrible. It feels like driving on ice. For whatever reason, some people can get their tires to work, but ultimately we’re all struggling.

“I did my best and didn’t really make any mistakes, so overall I’m happy. I did everything I could with what I had ”.

When asked by Sky Sports F1 if he was disappointed in his pace and form, after the long session interrupted by the red flag, Hamilton replied: “Haven’t you been watching all weekend? I was 20 years old before this, so this is an improvement. “

Stroll’s success in scoring his first pole position, and Canada’s first since Jacques Villeneuve at the 1997 European Grand Prix on his way to winning the title, ended Mercedes’ 13-pole pole streak this season.

Stroll said it was “on my bones” to shine in harsh wet and treacherous conditions after delivering the best moment of his career.

‘It’s in my bones’

The 22-year-old Canadian, whose billionaire father Laurence Stroll owns the Racing Point team, edged out the big names in the sport in the final seconds of a lengthy and dramatic session.

He said he owed his success to feeling at home in the slippery and treacherous conditions when heavy rains disrupted procedures and left the track unsafe for 45 minutes.

“I love it and have always enjoyed it,” Stroll said.

“At home, I grew up driving on ice in our parking lot with a lot of skidding and slipping without much grip. It’s in my bones. “

He added: “There were a lot of things that we weren’t sure about before qualifying. We didn’t seem that competitive in the third quarter. I’m very happy at the moment, I put that lap at the end when I was under a lot of pressure ”.

Max Verstappen in one Red Bull will start second on the grid ahead of Sergio Pérez in the other Racing Point and Alex Albon in the second Red Bull.

Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo was fifth fastest and shares the third row with Hamilton.

However, Stroll came to a nervous conclusion Saturday, when he was placed under an investigation by administrators for allegedly ignoring yellow flags.

Ultimately, he was acquitted of any wrongdoing after a turn seven incident that had caused the Perez explosion.

McLaren’s Carlos Sainz received a three-place grid penalty for preventing Pérez from leaving the pits.

His teammate Lando Norris was demoted five places for ignoring the yellow flags.

The penalties are a setback for McLaren as they battle Renault and Racing Point to secure third place in the constructors’ championship.

The three teams are separated by just one point with four races remaining.

Sainz, who was 13th, said the stewards could have been more considerate of the difficulties caused by the severe cold and wet conditions at the Istanbul Park Circuit.

“We are all trying to warm up our tires and I think the stewards should consider that,” he said.

“And we are all fighting to stay on track.”

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