Russell starts at pole as Mercedes claim front row

Lewis Hamilton (left), George Russell of Mercedes and McLaren’s Lando Norris (right) after qualifying in Northampton on Saturday. Pic/Getty Images

George Russell beat Lewis Hamilton to secure pole as their Mercedes team reeled off a front row lockout in Saturday's tense qualifying session for Sunday's British Grand Prix.

The two Britons were given a wild ovation by the crowd who saw a third Briton Lando Norris of McLaren take third to deliver the first one-two-three by British drivers at their home race. It was the first British triple top in qualifying at any race since the 1968 South African Grand Prix.

Also Read: Harmanpreet & Co look to bounce back in must-win T20I against SA

Russell grabbed pole in one minute and 25.819 seconds to beat seven-time champion Hamilton by 0.171 seconds in the final minute as the track improved, the trio leaving series leader and three-time champion Max Verstappen to qualify fourth in his slightly damaged Red Bull.

Norris admitted that he had made a mistake on his final lap, which led to him aborting it. Russell said that it was down to the Silverstone fans who had braved miserable weather to see a British triumph. "What a crowd and what energy!" he said over the team radio.

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever