By Matt Beer Saturday, August 2nd 2008, 13:06 GMT
Lewis Hamilton in HungaryLewis Hamilton put himself in the perfect position to score a third consecutive win by claiming a commanding pole position for the Hungarian Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver held a comfortable 0.4-second advantage over the rest of the field after his first Q3 flying lap, and although his rivals closed in, he managed to improve to 1:20.899 to secure the 10th pole of his Formula One career.
Hamilton will lead an all-McLaren front row after his teammate Heikki Kovalainen vaulted on to the outside of the front row with his last lap, having previously languished back in ninth.
Felipe Massa salvaged Ferrari honour in third place, as Kimi Raikkonen could only manage sixth place following another low-key performance.
BMW's Robert Kubica completed the second row, but his teammate Nick Heidfeld had another disastrous qualifying session. His first Q1 flying lap was only good enough for 15th place, and he was rapidly pushed into the elimination zone and then hit traffic on his second run, leaving him 16th and gesturing in frustration at Sebastien Bourdais.
Toyota's Timo Glock was the sensation of the qualifying session - earning an F1 career-best fifth on the grid, four places clear of teammate Jarno Trulli.
Fernando Alonso and Nelson Piquet took seventh and 10th for Renault, with Red Bull's Mark Webber and David Coulthard placing eighth and 13th respectively.
Toro Rosso were unable to repeat their strong morning form, and had to settle for 11th and 14th places with Sebastian Vettel and Bourdais - although the young German was only edged out of the top ten in the final seconds of Q2, and outpaced his teammate by 0.8 seconds.
Williams also had a troubled session. A hydraulic problem stranded Nico Rosberg in the garage in Q2 and left him 15th on the grid, two places ahead of teammate Kazuki Nakajima.
Rubens Barrichello was the other major name knocked out in Q1, Honda's veteran driver only managing 18th on the grid. But his teammate Jenson Button produced an excellent lap to leap up to 12th at the end of Q2.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Laps
1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:19.376 1:19.473 1:20.899 12
2. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:19.945 1:19.480 1:21.140 16
3. Massa Ferrari 1:19.578 1:19.068 1:21.191 16
4. Kubica BMW Sauber 1:20.053 1:19.776 1:21.281 19
5. Glock Toyota 1:19.980 1:19.246 1:21.326 24
6. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:20.006 1:19.546 1:21.516 19
7. Alonso Renault 1:20.229 1:19.816 1:21.698 15
8. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:20.073 1:20.046 1:21.732 18
9. Trulli Toyota 1:19.942 1:19.486 1:21.767 20
10. Piquet Renault 1:20.583 1:20.131 1:22.371 19
11. Vettel Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:20.157 1:20.144 17
12. Button Honda 1:20.888 1:20.332 15
13. Coulthard Red Bull-Renault 1:20.505 1:20.502 16
14. Bourdais Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:20.640 1:20.963 16
15. Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:20.748 10
16. Heidfeld BMW Sauber 1:21.045 7
17. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:21.085 9
18. Barrichello Honda 1:21.332 8
19. Fisichella Force India-Ferrari 1:21.670 9
20. Sutil Force India-Ferrari 1:22.113 10
All timing unofficial
