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Lewis Hamilton says Valtteri Bottas “nearly” beat him in Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Qualifying, and explains it took teamwork to lock out the front row.
Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas locked out the front row at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Qualifying, and Lewis explains how the result came about.
“I think for all of us we were naturally just pushing so hard,” the Briton said at the post-quali press conference.
“The track had shifted a little bit. I don’t know if it’s just the wind, but it made it so difficult with tire temperatures, so we were having to do heavy, quick out laps to try to get these tires working and in the right window, which was very, very odd.
“Very close between us all, but I think the Bulls were definitely faster today. I don’t know if we lost performance or they just gained but still I’m proud of the job that we have all done and I’m proud of the job that Valtteri has done, he nearly beat me out there.
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“That was one of the most intense qualifying sessions we’ve had for a while. I’m grateful for it, even though it’s only the fifth of the year.
“We have worked so hard through simulation, setup, collaboration, just epic with Valtteri who is the best teammate there has ever been in this sport, for sure.
“We have worked together to work on the setup to get the car where it needs to be, so whoo! Those guys were just so fast.
“That Bull around this track is something but given where we are, I’m very happy with what we managed to pull out with what we have,” concluded the seven-time champion.
