Hamilton: Hard to regain focus after Chadwick Boseman's death
Lewis Hamilton says it was hard to regain focus before his charge to pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix after learning of the death of actor Chadwick Boseman.


Boseman's death at the age of 43 was announced on Saturday morning, sparking an outpouring of tributes to the star of the celebrated Black Panther film.
Mercedes F1 driver Hamilton said on social media ahead of Saturday's running at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps that he was "devastated" by the news of Boseman's death, writing: "Our superhero passed away".
Hamilton charged to the 93rd pole position of his F1 career in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, recording two laps good enough for pole as he finished half a second clear of the field.
Hamilton revealed after the session that he had found it difficult to regain focus after receiving news of Boseman's death.
"Every lap was just getting better and better. We did a lot of great work in the background," Hamilton said.
"Today is a really important pole for me, because I woke up to the saddest news of Chadwick passing away. And it's been such a heavy year, I think for all of us and that news just really, really broke me.
"It was really not easy to get back in focus coming in today with that kind of hanging on my heart. I thought I had to go out there and drive it to perfection because what he's done for the superhero, it shows all these young kids what is possible.
"He was such a shining light. Wakanda forever."
Hamilton managed to take pole position without using a tow from team-mate Bottas, explaining after the session he had decided to go first on-track and get clear air.
"There's been times where we've had to try and get a tow," Hamilton said.
"We've got these three difficult sections where you've got, obviously the straight line first section here which is pretty straightforward but getting the right wing level here it's not so easy.
"Some, as you can see, are really quick in the first and last sector but not so good in the middle sector. We've not been the strongest today in the first and the last [sectors], but the middle has been very strong.
"This weekend was my choice to go first or second with Valtteri and I chose to go first. I wanted to be out in clean air, not having to worry about people up ahead of me giving the gap in the last corner.
"I didn't want anything coming in my way, so it worked out."
Related video

Belgian GP: Hamilton beats Bottas to pole by 0.5s
Q2 exit 'not a surprise' for Ferrari - Vettel

Latest news
Why the lack of "needle" between Red Bull and Ferrari in F1 2022 is a mirage
OPINION: The fight for the 2022 Formula 1 world titles between Red Bull and Ferrari so far features little of the public animosity that developed between the former and Mercedes last year. But that isn’t to say things are full on friendly or won’t get much worse very quickly…
The underdog F1 squad that thrust Senna into the limelight
The Toleman TG184 was the car that could, according to legend, have given Ayrton Senna his first F1 win but for Alain Prost and Jacky Ickx at Monaco in 1984. That could be stretching the boundaries of the truth a little, but as STUART CODLING explains, the team's greatest legacy was in giving the Brazilian prodigy passed over by bigger outfits an opportunity
Why Aston Martin is unlikely to repeat Jaguar’s F1 mistakes
Two famous manufacturer teams born out of humble midfield origins, splashing the cash while attempting to rise to the top of F1 in record time. There are clear parallels between Lawrence Stroll’s Aston Martin and the doomed Jaguar Racing project of 22 years ago, but Mark Gallagher believes struggling Aston can avoid a similar fate.
How rejuvenated Haas recovered its F1 mojo
US-owned but until recently Russian-backed, Haas seems to have reached a turning point in car performance after three gruesome seasons. And it needs to if it’s to attract fresh investment. Team boss Gunther Steiner tells Oleg Karpov how close Haas came to the abyss.
How F1 race leaders have now lost their comfort blanket
As Formula 1 teams have settled down in understanding the new generation of cars and the way they need to maximise their performance, fresh lessons have emerged. Jonathan Noble investigates how they have brought with them an all-new kind of grand prix racing
Gilles Villeneuve's 10 greatest F1 drives
Formula 1 lost one of its brightest stars when Gilles Villeneuve was killed during practice for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix. Forty years on, Motorsport.com picks out the greatest drives by a Ferrari legend
The silver lining of Ferrari’s Miami GP defeat
OPINION: Much was made of Formula 1’s first Miami Grand Prix – what turned out to be a very ‘marmite’ event for both those in attendance and everyone following on TV. But even as the on-track battle between Red Bull and Ferrari it produced continued the negative run of results for the red team, it contained a glimmer it must hope continues to shine
How imperfect Miami offered F1's drivers a unique challenge
OPINION: Despite all of the stylistic embellishments festooning Formula 1's inaugural Miami Grand Prix, the Miami International Autodrome offered the drivers a unique challenge and punished driver errors; a stark contrast to the usual cast of modern-day circuits