A candid Lewis Hamilton expected far less than a front row starting position for the European Grand Prix. The McLaren driver shared his thoughts in the post-qualifying press conference, having finished four tenths of a second slower than Sebastian Vettel.
“I’m really surprised – I expected to be a lot further back,” he began. “We have been struggling all weekend and I had to guess a few things with the setup to get what I wanted – but it seems to work! The guys did a great job, the car felt good.”
The front row is exactly the same as that in Canada a fortnight ago. However, Hamilton is this time keeping a keen eye on the Lotus cars of Romain Grosjean and Kimi Räikkönen.
“The Lotuses are looking massively competitive,” he continued. “I think they’re going to be the ones to watch tomorrow, but Ferrari will also be quick on the long runs. In these hot and tricky conditions, it’s all about looking after your tyres.”
The rising temperatures are expected to cause more dramas on race day.
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| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  S. Vettel | Red Bull | 01:38.086 | 15 |
| 2. | L. Hamilton | McLaren | 01:38.410 | 17 |
| 3. | P. Maldonado | Williams | 01:38.475 | 21 |
| 4. | R. Grosjean | Lotus | 01:38.505 | 16 |
| 5. | K. Raikkonen | Lotus | 01:38.513 | 16 |
| 6. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 01:38.623 | 17 |
| 7. | K. Kobayashi | Sauber | 01:38.741 | 12 |
| 8. | N. Hulkenberg | Force India | 01:38.752 | 19 |
| 9. | J. Button | McLaren | 01:38.801 | 16 |
| 10. | P. di Resta | Force India | 01:38.992 | 18 |
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