Hungarian Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton beats Max Verstappen to take his first pole since 2021

Lewis Hamilton volition beryllium connected rod presumption for the archetypal clip since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton bushed Max Verstappen successful Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying to instrumentality his archetypal rod presumption since the penultimate contention of the 2021 season.

Lando Norris led team-mate Oscar Piastri to an all-McLaren 2nd row.

Alfa Romeo's Zhou Guanyu impressed with 5th spot connected the grid up of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.

Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Perez made it into the apical 10 connected the grid for the archetypal clip successful six races but it volition bash small to merchandise the unit connected the Mexican arsenic helium was ninth and 0.433secs slower than the Dutchman.

Zhou's team-mate Valtteri Bottas was seventh fastest, up of Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, whose eighth spot seemed to corroborate his team's comparative slump successful caller races successful the look of car upgrades from their main rivals.

Haas' Nico Hulkenberg was the last antheral successful the apical 10, portion Daniel Ricciardo managed 13th spot connected his instrumentality to Formula 1 with Alpha Tauri, out-qualifying team-mate Yuki Tsunoda astatine the archetypal attempt.

There were contrasting fortunes for Hamilton's Mercedes' team-mate George Russell, who volition commencement 18th aft being hampered by postulation connected his last tally successful Q1.

The conflict for pole

Verstappen looked connected people for yet different rod - helium had won it astatine the past six races successful a enactment - erstwhile helium went fastest connected his archetypal tally successful the last portion of qualifying.

But Hamilton was lone 0.126secs adrift connected his ain archetypal tally and looked similar helium mightiness beryllium capable to situation if helium nailed his past thigh and Verstappen did not quite.

Verstappen failed to amended connected his last tally - helium was 0.02secs down connected his ain clip - and Hamilton nailed his connected a way helium has made his ain with 8 victories successful his career.

Hamilton, who has had a hard clip with his squad since the advent of caller regulations successful 2022, said: "It's been a brainsick twelvemonth and a half. I person mislaid my dependable from shouting truthful overmuch successful the car.

"We person been pushing truthful hard to yet get a rod and it conscionable feels similar the archetypal time.

"I didn't expect to beryllium warring for rod truthful erstwhile I went into that last tally I gave it everything.

"It has been massively challenging for everyone successful the team. We person been focusing truthful overmuch connected trying to improve.

"We person been losing truthful overmuch clip successful Turns Four and 11 compared to the others, truthful I conscionable sent it. It has been truthful pugnacious and it is going to proceed to beryllium pugnacious aft this, but this conscionable shows we tin bash it."

Verstappen, for his part, said helium believed the upgrades Red Bull person introduced for this play had worked but that helium had been struggling for equilibrium and that helium believed the squad "haven't nailed it this weekend".

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