Vettel takes pole position in China ahead of Raikkonen

Shanghai (SID) Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel (Heppenheim) is also on pole position for the Chinese Grand Prix. The world championship leader in the Ferrari beat his teammate Kimi Räikkönen (Finland) with the best time of 1:31,095 minutes in qualifying on Saturday. Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas (Finland) starts the third race of the season on Sunday (8.10 a.m. CEST/RTL) near Shanghai from third place on the grid. Defending champion Lewis Hamilton (Great Britain) in the second Silver Arrow had to settle for fourth place; completely surprisingly, the world champion team was around half a second behind Ferrari. "The car was amazing today, it got better and better," said Vettel, "I knew that if I hit the lap, then it would be enough." Hamilton spoke of a "difficult day. The car got away from us today, the speed just wasn't there," said the Briton: "We were half a second behind Ferrari, so I aborted my last lap. I knew I had theirs "Couldn't keep up with the pace." According to Mercedes Motorsport Director Toto Wolff, the cool temperatures were the main problem on Saturday. "It's complicated, we lack grip," said the Austrian. The tires were not kept at the necessary temperature for a long time. Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen (Netherlands) and Daniel Ricciardo (Australia) take fifth and sixth starting positions. The best man behind the three top teams was once again Nico Hülkenberg (Emmerich) in seventh place in the Renault. “We always do well in qualifying, seven is the maximum for us,” he said. For Vettel it was the 52nd pole of his career and the second in the young season. The 30-year-old won the first two races of the year in Australia and Bahrain. Most recently in Bahrain, Vettel and Räikkönen occupied the entire front row for Ferrari. In China, it is only the second time that a Ferrari has been on pole; at the premiere in 2004, the Brazilian Rubens Barrichello achieved this for the Scuderia.

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Vettel takes pole position in China ahead of Raikkonen

Four-time Formula 1 world champion Sebastian Vettel is also on pole position for the Chinese Grand Prix. The World Cup leader has completed the first part with flying colors.

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