Lewis Hamilton admitted his British Grand Prix Sprint pole came as an "amazing surprise", but he is confident Ferrari have the speed to claim a victory.

Having claimed his first victory with Ferrari at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, Hamilton then suffered disappointment in Austria, where an engine upgrade did not have the desired effect, and he finished fifth.

But returning to his home race, where he has won a record nine times, Hamilton looks to have regained his groove, having topped the timesheet in Friday's sole practice.

He then followed that up with a storming qualifying session at Silverstone, topping all three segments and pipping Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli to pole by 0.011 seconds.

It is Hamilton's first pole position in either format since last season's Sprint in China – which he went on to win – and he is confident Ferrari can continue to keep Mercedes and Red Bull at bay.

"We're ahead of a Mercedes and the Red Bull; they have so much power these guys," he said.

"They've been doing amazing all year, the boys in blue [Mercedes] this weekend, these champs, but my team won't let up, they'll keep pushing, and that's what I'm so proud of.

"It won't always be like this, but we didn't expect coming to Silverstone that we'd be competing for the front row, we really, really didn't, so this is an amazing surprise. I'm ecstatic."

Antonelli will start alongside him on the front row, while Max Verstappen took third in the improved Red Bull, with Hamilton's team-mate Charles Leclerc behind him in fourth.

George Russell, who won the Austrian Grand Prix, endured a tougher time than Antonelli but finished fifth and still enjoyed a much stronger qualifying than McLaren.

Lando Norris carried car damage through the first two segments, but repairs before the third saw him finish just ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri.

And while others struggled, Antonelli once again enjoyed another strong session before being edged out by Hamilton, but he is confident it will be a good contest at the front.

"It was so, so close, and it was a shame," Antonelli said.

"SQ1 I felt a bit bad. I didn't feel great in the car, but then we made a slight balance adjustment, and SQ2 felt night and day, and we suddenly were back on the pace.

"SQ3, there was a little bit left on the table, but it was a decent lap, and unfortunately, super close to Lewis.

"But congrats to him, and on our side, we'll focus on [Saturday] now."

British Grand Prix Sprint qualifying Top 10

1. Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)

2. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

5. George Russell (Mercedes)

6. Lando Norris (McLaren)

7. Oscar Piastri (McLaren)

8. Isack Hadjar (Red Bull)

9. Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)

10. Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls)