Planet-F1

Hamilton 'better than ever'

Saturday 6th September 2008

Lewis Hamilton declared himself to be "better than ever" after claiming pole position for Sunday's Belgian GP.

The Brit crossed the line with a 1:47.338 at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit to grab the coveted grid slot, his fifth of the season.

It was an important achievement from the 23-year-old as it means he will start the grand prix in front of his main title rival Felipe Massa.

"Today has been a great day for me," said Hamilton, who has a six-point over Massa in the Drivers' standings.

"I was so happy with all three laps I did in qualifying because it is always satisfying when you can do one lap and come back and watch everyone try and get their laps done.

"Today the team made no mistakes and I made no mistakes, I had three great laps, four great laps, at the end of Q3.

"My first Q3 lap had a bit of a lock-up at turn one, same at the second one but I kept it together, and the rest of the lap I was very happy with.

"I decided to stay with the harder tyre for Q2 and surprisingly the option, the softer tyre, is quite a bit better. Everyone else was on Option and I was on Prime, so I was comfortable with the pace I had considering I was on that tyre."

The Brit is hoping to turn his pole position into a victory and a valuable ten points, warning Massa and anyone else who wants to challenge him for the win that he is feeling better than ever.

"I feel great, the atmosphere in the team feels great," he said. "I think coming from Valencia we knew we had some work to do and I come here feeling better than ever.

"I feel comfortable in the car, I have got a big enough smile."