Hamilton surprised in Imola: "I didn't expect us to be ahead of the two Red Bulls"

Lewis Hamilton has qualified on pole position for the 2021 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The British driver records this feat for the 99th time in his F1 career, but perhaps this one came as a surprise. 

The Mercedes driver admits he didn't expect to be ahead of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez to start Sunday's Grand Prix. 

"I didn't expect us to be ahead of the two Red Bull. They have been so quick this weekend. The Mercedes was feeling better from the beginning this weekend," Hamilton said straight after the qualifying session.

Red Bull challenge

Hamilton will be the lone Mercedes car at the front of the grid. Teammate Valtteri Bottas found himself down in P8. Perez and Verstappen start from P2 and P3 respectively. Hamilton knows he is in for a challenging race. 

"I love the challenge, it's great to finally have the two Red Bulls there. It's going to make strategy harder. I'm so happy for today though, the first lap was so nice and really clean," he added.