Germany’s Sebastian Vettel will start in pole position for the Australian Grand Prix today after the Red Bull driver was quickest in qualifying yesterday.
Vettel posted a fastest lap time in qualifying of 1 minute, 23.529 seconds and will start on the inside of the front row alongside McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton of Britain.
Vettel’s Australian teammate Mark Webber was third quickest and will start from the second row along with two-time race winner Jenson Button in a McLaren.
Photo: EPA
It was the 23-year-old German’s 16th career pole and comes after Red Bull posted 15 poles from 19 races last season.
Vettel claimed the pole position in last year’s Melbourne race, but failed to finish as Button went on to win his second consecutive Australian Grand Prix in a rain-disrupted event.
“It’s quite promising for Sunday, and surely we have done the first step and starting the season that way is what you want to, and it’s just a good sign for all of us in the team,” Vettel said. “It was quite a pleasure today and I am very happy with the result, but we have zero points just like everybody else, so we’ll have to see tomorrow.”
Hamilton, the 2008 world champion, was astonished by the 0.8 seconds gap to Vettel, but was pleased with the strong improvement of his McLaren car from winter testing.
“I am absolutely thrilled to be on the front row of the grid, the guys back at the factory have done an unbelievable job and we’ve taken a massive step this weekend with the cars,” Hamilton said. “Of course, we have a lot of work to do, but we really have got ourselves on the right track and a great foundation to build upon.”
Webber, yearning to win his home Grand Prix at his 10th attempt, was disappointed to have lost a front row spot on the grid to Hamilton’s late run.
“I couldn’t do the times today and I was disappointed with my performance, and Seb obviously put in a very good lap and I am disappointed to have been bumped off the front row as well,” Webber said. “I tried my best, but I am a little mystified to the gap to Seb to be honest, and I will have to go through it and see where I can improve. A credit to the team, it’s not the best day for me, but the bar is high and I would have liked to have done better.”
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