Hamilton stunned by Ferrari's speed after Chinese GP sprint pole
What's the story
Lewis Hamilton secured his first pole position with Scuderia Ferrari in the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race.
Hamilton bested defending world champion and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri took third position, ahead of Ferrari's Charles Leclerc.
This comes after a tough debut weekend in Australia where Hamilton finished 10th.
Here's what Hamilton had to say after the proceedings.
Unexpected success
Hamilton expresses surprise at Ferrari's performance
Hamilton was astonished by Ferrari's performance.
"I'm a bit taken aback by it. I didn't know when we would get to this position and, after last weekend, it was a difficult start to the week," he told BBC Sport.
He added he came into this weekend with aggression and wanted to improve the car's performance.
"I came here with aggression and wanting to go into the weekend. I am just a bit gobsmacked," he said.
Team dynamics
Hamilton's performance outshines teammates
Hamilton edged out Leclerc by 0.208 seconds and Norris by 0.544 seconds, securing pole position for Saturday's sprint race.
He admitted that while this isn't the main pole, it is real motivation to push for more performance in the upcoming sessions.
"There's definitely a little more performance to find, for sure," Hamilton said confidently after his stunning qualifying run.
Team challenges
Leclerc shares his struggles during qualifying
Leclerc admitted his qualifying session wasn't the best, saying he felt a step behind Hamilton from the start.
"I struggled on my side of the garage. From the beginning I felt I was a step back from Lewis and he was just faster," Leclerc said according to BBC Sport.
He admitted struggling in Turns One, Two, and Three but remains hopeful for a strong race despite starting P4.
Team perspective
Ferrari team principal comments on qualifying
Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur discussed the intense competition among the top four teams and the challenge of fine-tuning the car to its optimal performance.
"The day was a bit difficult to read. McLaren was in front this morning and in Q1 we were in front, Q2 they were mega, Q3 we were back," he said.
Vasseur attributed these fluctuations to tire management and was optimistic about their performance despite a difficult weekend in Melbourne last week.
Unhappy with Ferrari
Hamilton downplays radio chatter controversy with Ferrari engineer
Hamilton recently put rumors of his unhappiness with Ferrari to rest, after a string of radio conversations during the Australian Grand Prix.
As per AP, the Briton clarified that his recent radio conversations are nothing compared to those of his Formula 1 rivals, like Verstappen.
Despite some strategic blunders and over-communication from his race engineer during the Albert Park race, Hamilton denied any anger toward Ferrari's race engineer Ricciardo Adami.
Australian GP
Ferrari struggle at the season-opening Australian GP
At the season-opening Australian GP, Ferrari and both their drivers did not get the result they were intending for.
Ferrari earned just five points from the season-opening Australian GP.
Hamilton finished 10th to settle for 1 point in his maiden GP with Ferrari.
Meanwhile, his teammate Leclerc took 8th place and earned four points.