Hamilton claims Hungary pole

Lewis Hamilton posted the quickest time in all three qualifying sessions at the Hungaroring

29 July 2012

Britain's Lewis Hamilton will start Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix from pole position.

The McLaren driver, 62 points behind championship leader Fernando Alonso, improved his title chances by topping qualifying at the Hungaroring.

Lotus driver Romain Grosjean will start the race from second position, with Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel third.

Hamilton had looked strong in practice and he mastered conditions of around 30 degrees at the circuit near Budapest to make sure of the 22nd pole of his career and the 150th for his team.

Grosjean, eighth in the standings, pipped defending champion Vettel to the second place on the grid.

It capped a disappointing day for Red Bull, who hold a 53-point advantage in the constructors standings.

Vettel's team-mate, Mark Webber, will start 11th on the grid. His title chances had earlier taken a knock when he was pipped to a top 10 spot by Bruno Senna.

Hamilton's team-mate Jenson Button starts fourth, with Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus) in fifth.