SHANGHAI – World championship leader Sebastian Vettel underlined his superiority by storming to pole position for Sunday’s Chinese Grand Prix with the fastest lap ever recorded at the Shanghai circuit.
The 23-year-old’s Red Bull clocked a time of one minute 33.706 seconds, seven-tenths of a second quicker than the McLaren of Britain’s Jenson Button, sending a strong message to rivals that the German remains the man to beat. By taking pole, defending world champion Vettel became the first Formula One driver since Michael Schumacher in 2004 to start at the front of the grid in the opening three races of the season.
But despite wins in this year’s opening two races in Australia and Malaysia, Vettel said he would be taking nothing for granted on race day. “Obviously we did it again but I try to remind myself and the team that every time is tough,” Vettel told reporters.
