Lewis Hamilton has warned his rivals that he will be “aggressive” in his search for a first Ferrari Grand Prix podium on Sunday. The seven-time Formula 1 world champion has put himself in a strong position to finally end that long wait for a top-three finish, having qualified third for the Mexico City Grand Prix.
Hamilton is the first driver in Ferrari’s entire 75-year F1 history to still be waiting for a podium after 19 Grand Prix appearances. He won the Sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix back in March, but has been unable to replicate that success in a full-distance race.
But he has his best chance yet of doing so after Ferrari flexed their muscles in qualifying at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. Lando Norris produced a monster lap to take pole-position but he will have two red cars on his tail when the lights go out on Sunday, with Charles Leclerc second on the grid and Hamilton third.
The Mexico track features the longest run down to turn one of the season which makes it hard for the driver on pole to retain the lead, often leading to those who start second or third taking early control of the race. And that is exactly what Hamilton intends to do as he aims to get the jump on both his team-mate Leclerc and fellow Brit Norris.
Hamilton said: “It’s great to have two Ferraris up there, it’s pretty cool. I’m grateful. Charles put in a good lap, he’s been incredible all weekend and he’s always quick in qualifying. I’m quite grateful to be third and I’m hoping to capitalise on that.
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“Charles has a new soft tyre and I don’t for tomorrow – same with Lando. But P3 is not a bad position to start here because you can tow, so I’ll be aggressive and I want to move forward. It would be amazing [to get a first Grand Prix podium for Ferrari].”
Hamilton felt comfortable in his car throughout qualifying, which is something of a rarity for him this year, and the 40-year-old declared himself delighted with the progress he and his team have made – even if he had expected to get to grips with his car a lot quicker than has been the case.
He added: “I’m so happy to be up there in the top three. It’s taken me all year to get here, so it’s been a serious mountain to climb. But I’m finally gelling with everything around me. Myself and my engineers, we’re really starting to extract the performance from the car, so I’m really happy.
“It’s been a tough year and I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to get here, but that’s okay. What matters is the journey and I’ve grown a lot through it.”
