Lewis Hamilton said the pace of his Mercedes was a “real shock” after he stormed his way to a sixth straight pole in Melbourne.

That result also secured his eighth pole overall at the circuit, moving the five-time champ level with the achievements of Michael Schumacher in Japan, and Ayrton Senna’s pole record in San Marino.

A rejuvenated Valtteri Bottas provided Hamilton’s only challenge for pole, with both drivers trading new one-lap records at Albert Park, leaving the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel a staggering six tenths adrift in P3.

Speaking via Motorsport Week, Hamilton said: “We went back to factory [after testing], knew we had work to do.

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