First sprint race is on: Hamilton takes pole for spectacular Formula 1 premiere


First sprint race is coming up
Hamilton takes pole for spectacular Formula 1 premiere

The first sprint race in Formula 1 will be held tomorrow, Saturday, in Silverstone. That’s why the qualification starts on Friday. The local hero dominates: World Champion Lewis Hamilton. He keeps the World Cup leader Max Verstappen in check.

Record world champion Lewis Hamilton surprisingly starts from first place in the first sprint race in Formula 1 history – and he can hope for a comeback in the fight for the title at the home Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver won qualifying at Silverstone and relegated world championship leader Max Verstappen to second place by seven hundredths. Hamilton’s team-mate Valtteri Bottas was third. “My heart was pounding up to my neck,” said Hamilton about his success, which was recently no longer subscribed.

In the sprint on Saturday (5.30 p.m. CEST / Sky and in the ntv.de live ticker) But then it’s only about the starting positions for the Grand Prix on Sunday. The premier class is testing this format for the first time in Silverstone.

Sebastian Vettel took tenth place in the Aston Martin, Haas driver Mick Schumacher landed second to last in 19th position. On Saturday, 17 laps and thus around 100 kilometers will be completed. Whoever wins the race will take pole position on Sunday.

In the World Cup duel, Hamilton urgently needs a success at the home Grand Prix. Red Bull has won the last five races and Hamilton is 32 points behind Verstappen. Since the first three of the sprint also score points on Saturday, a maximum of 29 points can be won this weekend.

In view of the short distance of the sprint, the makers of Formula 1 hope for tough racing without the usual constraints in long races: Over the normal 300 kilometers, the drivers always have to watch their tires and can hardly get everything out of their cars.

The weakness of the format could, however, be the height of the fall, because whoever is eliminated on Saturday has little chance of a good result in the main race either. “If there are opportunities in the sprint, you will of course seize them,” said Vettel about possible overtaking maneuvers, “but the most important thing will be that you finish the race. Otherwise you will start from the back on Sunday.”

.