It is looking increasingly like a repeat scenario for the Ferrari driver, who now has just six races left to catch Hamilton as they both bid for a fifth F1 title.
Vettel sat glum-faced in the news conference after qualifying third, trailing Hamilton by a sizeable margin in Formula One terms: 0.6 seconds.
Hamilton produced something special to set a blistering time and secure a record-extending 79th pole position in Formula One and a 200th for a British driver.
Sebastian Vettel was nearly two seconds behind Raikkonen in ninth, but was using slower tires than his teammate.
Ayrton Senna da Silva won three Formula One world championships for McLaren in 1988, 1990 and 1991, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest Formula One drivers of all time.
After winning three of the first six races of the season, Vettel's grip has loosened in the driver's standings with only one win in the past eight.
Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo prevented a Mercedes 1-2 by finishing ahead of Valtteri Bottas, who placed third in the Singapore GP.
Vettel's 49th career pole came on the track where he holds the record with four wins and six podiums overall, and his superiority showed in a lap record of 1 minute 39.491 seconds.
SINGAPORE: Lewis Hamilton took the lead in the Formula One drivers' championship by winning the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday, leapfrogging teammate Nico Rosberg who had to retire early with a gear-selection failure. Hamilton led comfortably
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