Sergio Perez pips both Ferraris to career-first pole: 'What a lap, it was unbelievable!'
• Red Bull's Sergio Perez will start the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix from pole.
• It is the first time in his F1 career that he will start in first place.
• Perez edged Ferrari's Charles Leclerc to pole.
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As Sergio Perez raced to pole position at the Jeddah street circuit, Lewis Hamilton failed to make it out of Q1 in one of the worst qualifying displays of his record-breaking Formula 1 career. The Red Bull driver said: "It took me a couple of races! But what a lap man, it was unbelievable!"
Hamilton will start a lowly 16th in Sunday's (27 March) Saudi Arabian Grand Prix following a qualifying session that saw Mick Schumacher airlifted to hospital after being involved in a terrifying 257km/h crash.
Hamilton and his Mercedes team have struggled to get on top of the sport's new regulations, but nobody here would have predicted the grid's most decorated driver would fall at the first hurdle.
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The first Mexican driver to put it on pole! ??Take a bow @SChecoPerez ??#SaudiArabianGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/Ey8IKKplbf
'So sorry'
A disconsolate Hamilton - nearly seven-tenths slower than George Russell in the other Mercedes, who ended up qualifying sixth - replied: "I am so sorry, guys."
Charles Leclerc will start second ahead of Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz with world champion Max Verstappen fourth.
With two minutes of Q1 remaining, Hamilton, who started from pole and won in Jeddah last year, said: "Can't seem to improve, man… are we at risk right now?"
His race engineer, Peter Bonnington replied: "Affirm, we are at risk."
READ: F1 WRAP | 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Sergio Perez takes career-first pole
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