Lewis Hamilton breaks former Ferrari star Sebastian Vettel’s record with his Sprint Shootout pole position

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton broke the lap record of his ex-rival and former four-time F1 world champion Sebastian Vettel with his pole position in the Sprint qualifying at the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix on Friday. The British driver bounced back after a disappointing debut race with the Italian team in Melbourne last weekend, where he could only muster a P10 finish in changeable conditions.

However, it was a completely different story at Shanghai International Circuit, as the seven-time F1 world champion looked comfortable in his SF-25. He was the faster of the two Ferrari drivers and got the better of his teammate Charles Leclerc in the Sprint qualifying.

On his way to achieving the fastest lap time, Hamilton also broke the lap record at the Shanghai International Circuit, which was previously held by Sebastian Vettel. In his Ferrari years, the German driver clocked a time of 1:31:095 in 2018 which was enough to get him pole position and the record.

In 2025, racing for the same team, Lewis Hamilton took the lap record away from his friend and rival by putting in a time of 1:30.849 to secure pole position.

Coincidentally, the time set by the Top 3 in the Sprint qualifying was better than Sebastian Vettel's lap in 2018 as Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri finished within a tenth of Hamilton's time.

Lewis Hamilton gives his honest take after getting pole position in Sprint Qualifying

Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton stated that he was "gobsmacked" by his pole position in the Sprint qualifying on Friday given that he was miles off the pace in his debut outing with the Italian team in Melbourne.

Speaking with F1.com, the 40-year-old reflected on this feat and said:

"I'm just a bit gobsmacked, taken back by it. I didn't know when we would get to this position. After last weekend, it was a difficult start to the week. We came here with aggression and wanting to go into the weekend and get the car into a great place.

"I started out straight away with a better feeling in the car. I can't believe we are at the front, ahead of a McLaren which has been so fast throughout winter testing, Australia and even today."

He added:

“My first sector was really, really strong, I think that’s where I made most of my improvement on that lap, but just little increments through the whole place. There’s still time to find, for sure, which I’ll try and make sure that I apply to the next Qualifying session we go out in."

Lewis Hamilton finished P2 in the Sprint last year after leading from the front for the majority of the race.