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Upon his return from F1 to Portugal, 24 years after the last stage in the circus, the Mercedes driver achieved pole 97 of his career, a record in the sport, and can reach 92 World Cup victories. surpassing the maximum that he shares with the German Michael Schumacher (91).
Winner of seven of the 11 races already contested, Hamilton secured the fastest time at the Portimão circuit, spending around 1.16.652 minutes just at the end of qualifying, and will start alongside his Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas, who spent more 102 milliseconds.
The Dutch Max Verstappen (Red Bull) and the Monegasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) occupy the second row, in third and fourth, respectively.
Six-time world champion and title holder, Hamilton leads the championship with 230 points, against 161 for Bottas and 147 for Verstappen, who remain in the immediate positions.
Portugal receives a round of the Formula 1 world championship for the seventeenth time, benefiting from the reorganization of the 2020 calendar brought on by the covid-19 pandemic.
The 2020 World Cup should have started on March 15 in Melbourne, Australia, with the first of 22 events scheduled, but the outbreak of the disease caused by the new coronavirus caused the cancellation of the Grand Prix, two days before the race.
Cancellations (13) and postponements of events (five) followed, on several continents, and the organization decided, in April, to advance the championship, starting in July, with a calendar with 15 to 18 Grands Prix, mainly concentrated in Europe. .
On July 24, the presence of the Portuguese GP, which will have 27,500 spectators, was confirmed on the calendar.
