Lewis Hamilton was celebrating the 49th pole of his career and ninth this season.
CNN  — 

Lewis Hamilton set a pace as blazing hot as the searing temperatures at Hungaroring Saturday to claim his ninth pole of the Formula One season.

The defending world champion, bidding for a record fifth Hungarian Grand Prix victory, again out qualified Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg, with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel a distant third on the time sheets.

The 30-year-old Briton was claiming the 47th pole position of his career, with his Mercedes delivering peak performance in temperatures of over 50 degrees Centigrade at track side.

“I’m incredibly happy with the weekend, I can’t remember having a performance as good as this,” he told the post-qualifying media conference.

Rosberg, a full half second slower than his teammate, was less satisfied with his display, beaten to top place on the grid Hamilton for the fifth straight time.

Four-time champion Vettel edged ahead of Australian Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull and his Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen in fifth.

Valtteri Bottas for Williams, Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull), Felipe Massa in the second Williams, youngster Max Verstappen for Toro Rosso and Romain Grosjean in the Lotus rounded out the top 10.

But it was another miserable afternoon for the McLaren-Honda team as Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button were 15th and 16th fastest.

Hamilton is looking to extend his 17-point advantage over Rosberg in the title race Sunday, where temperatures are again expected to soar.

“The moment you leave your room it is like a workout in a sauna,” was how he described the experience earlier this week, but four victories from eight starts are testament to Hamilton’s liking for the venue near Budapest.

The build-up to the race was overshadowed by the news of the death of Jules Bianchi, with many teams sporting tributes to the Frenchman on the livery of their cars.

A minute’s silence to honor the former Marussia star will be held just before the start Sunday.