Hamilton Stuns F1 Grid to Steal Surprise Pole in Hungary

Lewis Hamilton delivered a stunning final lap to edge out Max Verstappen and steal pole position for Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix. It marked Hamilton's first pole since last season, ending a dismal qualifying run for the Mercedes driver in 2023.

Alternative tyre regulations added intrigue to the session, with different compounds mandated for each segment of qualifying. Pirelli brought their hardest, medium and softest compounds for Q1, Q2 and Q3 respectively.

Despite this, Hamilton navigated the challenge superbly. He finished the first qualifying segment in 8th place before progressing to Q3 in 5th.

There, Hamilton delivered when it mattered most. On his final lap in Q3, he blazed around the Hungaroring in 1 minute 16.609 seconds to snatch provisional pole from Verstappen by just 0.003 seconds.

Verstappen had looked on course for pole after setting the early Q3 benchmark. But he was unable to find any more time on his last attempt, leaving him second alongside Hamilton on the front row.

A surprised Lando Norris will start 3rd for McLaren, just 0.084 seconds slower than Hamilton's sizzling pole lap. It marks an excellent qualifying result for the young British driver.

Elsewhere, McLaren enjoyed a strong afternoon with Oscar Piastri qualifying 4th. Zhou Guanyu took a stellar 5th for Alfa Romeo ahead of both Ferraris, with Charles Leclerc only managing 6th and Valtteri Bottas seventh in the other Alfa.

Fernando Alonso took a good 8th for Aston Martin, while Sergio Perez finally shrugged off his frustrating Q3 results to qualify 9th in the second Red Bull. Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top 10 for AlphaTauri.

Speaking after qualifying, an elated Hamilton admitted he didn't expect to be fighting for pole this weekend. But when it mattered in Q3, he gave everything on his final flying lap.

"It's been a crazy year and half, so I've lost my voice from shouting so much in the car," said Hamilton.

"To finally get a pole, it feels like the first time. I gave it absolutely everything on that last run. There was nothing left in it."

With pole position secured, Hamilton will be aiming to convert that into his first win of 2023 on Sunday. The Hungarian Grand Prix starts at 3pm local time - follow all the build-up, live coverage and reporting at RACEHUB.com.