| Saturday Qualifying – Massa On Pole Ahead of Hamilton, Kubica
Felipe Massa beat Lewis Hamilton to pole position for the first Grand Prix to be held at the Valencia street circuit.
The duo battled fiercely in Q3, with Ferrari driver Massa initially taking provisional pole by a commanding half a second after Hamilton made an error in the final sector.
Undaunted, Hamilton (McLaren) tried again and on his second run he was able to edge ahead of the Brazilian by 0.2 seconds, only for Massa to find even more time and leap back to the timesheets in a 1:13.989.
After topping final practice, Robert Kubica again showed very strong pace as he grabbed third on the grid for BMW – forcing Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari and Heikki Kovalainen’s McLaren down to fourth and fifth.
But the real star of qualifying was Sebastian Vettel, who was fastest of all in Q2 and then claimed a superb sixth on the grid for Toro Rosso, with his teammate Sebastien Bourdais reaching Q3 for the first time and taking 10th…(read full qualifying report here)
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1. Massa Ferrari 1:38.176 1:37.859 1:38.989 19
2. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:38.464 1:37.954 1:39.199 15
3. Kubica BMW Sauber 1:38.347 1:38.050 1:39.392 18
4. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:38.703 1:38.229 1:39.488 21
5. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:38.656 1:38.120 1:39.937 18
6. Vettel Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:38.141 1:37.842 1:40.142 19
7. Trulli Toyota 1:37.948 1:37.928 1:40.309 21
8. Heidfeld BMW Sauber 1:38.738 1:37.859 1:40.631 19
9. Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:38.595 1:38.336 1:40.721 18
10. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:38.622 1:38.417 1:40.750 18
11. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:38.667 1:38.428 15
12. Alonso Renault 1:38.268 1:38.435 12
13. Glock Toyota 1:38.532 1:38.499 14
14. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:38.559 1:38.515 15
15. Piquet Renault 1:38.787 1:38.744 15
16. Button Honda 1:38.880 6
17. Coulthard Red Bull-Renault 1:39.235 9
18. Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 1:39.268 10
19. Barrichello Honda 1:39.811 10
20. Sutil Force India-Ferrari 1:39.943 9
Wow! What good fun those qualifying sessions brought (apart from Piquet hitting what seemed like a bird on the qualifying first run) – it clearly shows how much a new track can change and will change especially tomorrow during the race. Kimi didn’t get pole but he definately looks very fast despite what the results showed throughout Q1, Q2 and ultimately Q3. Kimi still remains prefering the harder tyre for qualifying and the start of the race – he also looks like a couple of laps more fuelled than Massa but Kimi likes this as it helps his tyres work better. Before they pitted, Kimi and Felipe were very close on pace (Massa one or two tenths quicker) eventhough Kimi wasn’t on the harder tyres that he prefers. So this is clearly a sign that Kimi is still truly really fast! It’s funny how it’s always a surprise to get pole in Massa’s camp, they always seem a little bemused. And it’s bloody irritating! Congratulations to him anyway, taking the first pole at this amazing circuit is an honour. Vettel, Trulli and Alonso also did amazing work today and a pity for them that they’re not higher than they have qualified. Alonso made a mistake to miss out on Q3 but he’s one to look out for tomorrow, unless there’s chaos on the first lap. With Hamilton behind Massa, I’m sure he’ll be eager to give Massa a hard time on the start, after what happened in Hungary (read what they have to say in the press conference). And we predicted a BMW in the mix at the front, and Kubica made sure of that by getting infront of our Kimi. That’s not a good thing, but at least Kimi, unlike Massa, starts the race on the more grippier side of the track. This should definately help him on the start. Kovalainen looks like he’s gone back to basics and isn’t really in a position to challenge much unless of course something goes wrong in the front. All in all, it’s a good line up for the race but slightely disappointing as we’d have loved to see Kimi right in the middle of the Massa/Hamilton saga. Kimi will be giving them something to think about tomorrow, nonetheless and if there’s a safety car situation and I’m positive that there will be, all won’t be lost so perhaps it’s good that Kimi’s isn’t on pole as the pole sitter is the one who’ll be penalised most. So for this inaugural Valencia GP there maybe slight hesitation in the start but the Iceman will get into his groove right on time. I can’t wait! Keep Flying Kimi!
| Qualifying Quotes, Kimi – "Could have been higher but for wheel-lock"
Felipe Massa – 1st: "It’s great to be on pole position, especially after the great disappointment of Budapest, but I’m well aware the race is tomorrow and so there is still a long way to go. My first run in Q3 was very good and on the second I made a good improvement in the first sector and that’s where pole came from…The team did a great job in preparing for this event and I want to thank them for giving me such a strong car. I hope we can have a good race tomorrow."
Kimi Raikkonen – 4th: "Fourth place is not what I was looking for, but it’s definitely not the end of the world. I could have been higher up the grid but on my last run in Q3, I locked the wheels at a few points and lost valuable time: it was nothing dramatic, but at this circuit, a small error is very costly. I still think I can be in the fight for the win, especially if I manage to get a good start. We have a good car, which should be especially competitive in the race."
Luca Baldisserri: "A good qualifying session, very close and made even more uncertain because of the weather. A first and a fourth place is a good outcome, even if it could have been better. Felipe did two great laps in Q3, while Kimi missed out by a whisker on being able to start from the clean side of the track. In fact, the start will be one of the decisive moments of the race…
| Videos – FP3 Full Onboard Kimi, Last Mins of QLF, Kimi Interview
http://www.viddler.com/simple/5e990806/ http://www.viddler.com/simple/f052e2c3/ http://www.viddler.com/simple/d4963fa0/
FUCK ISRAEL 
KIMI in the final lap less good, phase I and phase II of his fastest
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