Hamilton beats Sergio Perez to Imola pole

Lewis Hamilton took pole position ahead of Sergio Perez in a thrilling Emilia Romagna Grand Prix qualifying session.

Briton Hamilton was just 0.035 seconds clear in the Mercedes as Mexican Perez, in only his second race for Red Bull, beat team-mate Max Verstappen.

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Charles Leclerc put the Ferrari fourth, while Valtteri Bottas was only eighth in the second Mercedes.

McLaren’s Lando Norris had his fastest lap time deleted for exceeding track limits and fell from second to seventh.

Hamilton’s pole marked a significant shift in fortunes at the front since the first race of the season, when the Red Bull was clearly the quickest car and Verstappen was on pole by 0.4secs.