Mercedes Executive Chairman Niki Lauda heaped praise on Lewis Hamilton, claiming that he has “never seen anything” like the Briton’s pole position lap for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Hamilton was left frustrated after Friday’s practice sessions at the Baku City Circuit, finishing down in 10th position, amid difficulties in getting the tyres into the correct operating window.
Hamilton emerged second to Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas after the first runs in Q3, having run wide through Turn 16, before turning the tables in the final minutes, following a red-flag period when Daniel Ricciardo hit the wall at Turn 6.
Both Hamilton and Bottas improved on their initial efforts, with Hamilton finishing 0.434s clear of the Finn, and over a second ahead of third-placed Kimi Räikkönen.
“We had some problems on Friday, but the team really did fantastic job to set the car up in the right way,” Lauda is quoted by the official F1 website.
“And Lewis with his lap today…I’ve never seen anything like it.”
On improving the Mercedes W08 overnight, Lauda commented: “It was not plain sailing at all, but a lot of thinking, digging, back to the factory, and in the end the improvement the engineers and mechanics did to the car is outstanding.
“And then Lewis, what he did today, no one else I think can do that.
“He’s fantastic, especially thinking about his lap time here, because the difference he makes… it’s only Lewis.”
Hamilton’s pole position was his fifth of the season and 66th of his Formula 1 career.
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