A delighted Lewis Hamilton described his qualifying laps at the Japanese Grand Prix as "insane" after securing pole position on Saturday.

Championship leader Hamilton shattered the circuit record at Suzuka to comfortably top the timesheets ahead of Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel.

Although a grid penalty for Bottas means Vettel will start alongside Hamilton on the front row, the Briton will take some stopping if his qualifying pace can be matched in Sunday's race.

"It's incredible to come here with this car and drive on this track," said Hamilton.

"With this car it's mind-blowing. I wish everyone could feel what we feel.

"It's always been a crazy rollercoaster ride, but with the downforce on these cars, it's insane. The way you can throw the car around, I love that."

In addition to hailing the machine at his disposal, Hamilton was satisfied with his own performance, adding: "I was very much on it. I didn't make one mistake all session and just kept getting better and better.

"It is great when it comes together on days like this. If we were on the back foot here it wouldn't be a great position to be in, let's hope she [the car] is not stubborn tomorrow. We've put ourselves in the right position to get the job done on Sunday."