Belgian F1 Grand Prix 2017 Qualifying: Lewis Hamilton Wins Pole Position

Lewis Hamilton finished up on top in all three phases of qualifying on Saturday to earn pole position at the 2017 Belgian Formula One Grand Prix. In the process, Hamilton equalled Michael Schumacher's career record of 68 poles. 

Hamilton twice broke the track record and finished ahead of rival Sebastian Vettel of Ferrari.

Hamilton's final times were confirmed by the Formula One official Twitter account:

Kimi Raikkonen had gotten the day started by finishing fastest in the third practice session for Ferrari. The session also featured engine problems for Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat, as well as a costly grid penalty for Williams driver Felipe Massa, per BBC Sport's Andrew Benson.

The F1 official Twitter account relayed times from the third and final practice session:

There was more misery for Massa and Kvyat when neither driver made the cut after Q1. It was a phase thoroughly dominated by Hamilton, who set an eye-catching time:

Yet while it was plain sailing for the Mercedes man, Raikkonen was enduring a rough time. The Finn couldn't get near Hamilton in Q1.

Worse still, Raikkonen's impressive Ferrari began to fail him. The 37-year-old complained about problems at the back, per Channel 4 F1:

Mechanical problems also proved the undoing of McLaren-Honda's Fernando Alonso and Jolyon Palmer of Renault Sport F1. A faulty gearbox did for the latter, while Alonso missed the cut at the end of Q2.

It didn't matter to Hamilton, though, as he twice broke the track record over the final two stages. First, he posted this time to win Q2:

Then he broke the record once more as he closed in on Schumacher's total number of pole wins:

Now he can set his sights on Schumacher's mark of six GP wins in Belgium.

The final standings showed how impressive Hamilton's driving was. He is looking primed to boss the race on Sunday and strike a major blow against his rivals, particularly Vettel, in the Championship chase.