Lewis Hamilton hails 'incredible' start to 2012 after Australian GP pole position

The McLaren driver beat team-mate Jenson Button to the top spot, finishing 0.152 seconds ahead to secure his 20th career pole position and the first one since last year's Korean Grand Prix.

Hamilton will start five places ahead of world champion Sebastian Vettel, sixth today behind Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber.

The British driver was elated with the result.

"It is an incredible feeling from back here, and to get such a good start, this is my and Jenson's my first 1-2 in qualifying," said Hamilton. "It is fantastic to start the season this way. I am massively proud of team working hard as they always do, to see this result is great."

"It is a fantastic feeling. It's great to be back here and it is an incredible start to the season. Tomorrow is the most important day and we have a lot to look forward to. A tremendous job by the team to get us to this point. They had a tough couple of years but never gave up."

Despite his pole and McLaren's strong form, Hamilton is expecting a very tight battle for victory on Sunday.

"I think it is going to be incredibly tough and intense through the race. Looking after tyres will be key, getting a good start, seeing what strategies are. The teams need to be on the ball and so do me and Jenson."

Button was also very happy with the result, despite losing out to his team-mate.

"We have done a very good job this winter, and we proved that today," said Button. "It is only the beginning and the lights have not gone out yet, but this is great first result for us."

The 2009 world champion warned, however, that Red Bull could not be ruled out despite its low-key qualifying.

"Red Bull haven't lost it," Button added. "They are still going to be competitive, and we can never forget that. But we will enjoy the moment go out tomorrow and hopefully have a great race."