Lewis Hamilton insisted he is ready to complete the “impossible” dream and fight his way to a maiden Ferrari victory in Sunday’s prestigious Monaco Grand Prix.
The arrival of Kim Kardashian for her first appearance in the Formula One paddock as Hamilton’s girlfriend provided a sprinkle of stardust away from the track.
And on it, Kimi Antonelli lit up the principality with a self-proclaimed “magic” lap to take pole position and put him in the driving seat to secure a remarkable fifth straight win.
Max Verstappen starts second, one place ahead of Hamilton. George Russell faces losing even further ground to Antonelli in the world championship. Russell, already 43 points behind, starts sixth.
Overtaking is largely unfeasible here, but Hamilton is hopeful he can provide an upset to take the 106th win of his career and break his Ferrari duck.
He said: “You know how these races go. It’s very, very difficult. I hope we can get a really good start and maybe apply some pressure. I probably need rain. But nothing’s impossible.
“It is a shame that this race is normally a procession, in the sense of following one another. The car is overheating; the brakes are overheating with the way the track is.
“But I’ll try to get in there and hassle these two [Antonelli and Verstappen] as much as I can and force them into not making certain corners.”
After a sub-standard first year with Ferrari, Hamilton is beginning to rediscover his old form.
Nico Rosberg said in the buildup to the sixth round that Hamilton was not yet at the level required to win a record eighth world championship.
And Hamilton continued: “It is all about confidence. I felt capable. I am in a really good place with the car, and I am in a good place with the team.
“There was no lacking of pace, and I was really grateful for that. In regards to all of the negative comments that people have made, I keep putting the work in, I keep turning up and I keep delivering.”
Despite Hamilton’s optimism, he would have hoped to have been on pole after lapping faster than anyone else here in practice a day earlier.
“We barely changed anything, but the car was drastically different once we got to qualifying,” Hamilton said. “It was a step back and we have to take a deep dive into that.
“But I gave it absolutely everything. I was as close to the barriers as I could be. I thought we almost had it, but Max put in a good time and then Kimi, too.”
- Monaco Grand Prix: Kimi Antonelli on pole for fourth time, Max Verstappen behind- Monaco GP: Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc puts pole lap error down to ‘dirty air’- Monaco GP: Kimi Antonelli eyes fifth straight win after ‘magic’ pole
For Antonelli, the 19-year-old is riding the crest of a wave. He could be more than 50 points clear in the title race after Sunday’s 78-lap race -- the equivalent of two wins.
“It was one of those laps, a magic lap,” Antonelli said. “This is the most intense qualifying of the year, and it takes a lot of effort to keep trying to get close to the limit.
“When you are trying to find the last two tenths, it is not easy, because the walls start to come closer. So, I am really happy to be on pole.”
