First Qualifying Times From Imola

[Monty 0]

1. RAIKKONEN McLaren 1m19.886s

2. ALONSO Renault 1m19.889s

3. M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari 1m20.260s

4. WEBBER Williams 1m20.442s

5. BUTTON BAR 1m20.464s

6. TRULLI Toyota 1m20.492s

7. MASSA Sauber 1m20.593s

8. WURZ McLaren 1m20.632s

9. HEIDFELD Williams 1m20.807s

10. SATO BAR 1m20.851s

11. BARRICHELLO Ferrari 1m20.892s

12. R.SCHUMACHER Toyota 1m20.994s

13. VILLENEUVE Sauber 1m20.999s

14. COULTHARD Red Bull 1m21.632s

15. FISICHELLA Renault 1m21.708s

16. LIUZZI Red Bull 1m21.804s

17. KARTHIKEYAN Jordan 1m23.123s

18. MONTEIRO Jordan 1m25.100s

19. ALBERS Minardi 1m25.921s

20. FRIESACHER Minardi 1m26.484s

Have the Mclarens found the pace or what?

[Taku 0]

how close were 1 & 2? 3 thousandths.

was really impressed with webber, button and massa. 1 second separating the top 10 really shows how close the fight is at this point.

[chennaiguy 0]

Go Mclaren Go

seems last till last race Mclarens were worried only abt their qualifying times and were confident they had the race pace-now they have closed on that largely-hope they will try maintain these kinda performance

oops F2005 of MS is in challenging spot

[Taku 0]

indeed. both mclaren and bar have been struggling for quali pace and mclaren particularly look to have oevrcome the problem. they'll be very strong tomorrow i think.

[Monty 0]

The good thing about Mclaren is, they had no performance package for Imola, and that looks like a winning car. Wonder how they will be once tehy reach Spain, as the car is expected have some changes.

I don't agree with Taku, but being impressed with JB. I'm not so sure mate about him mate, I was expecting him to be on the pole considering his blistering practise runs, and he is alomst half a second off Kimi, and that is not good.

[chennaiguy 0]

ya i too think Spain will see a Mclaren with a step forward and will be highly competitive-wooh i can't wait to see it

also seems B.A.R has done gr8 changes but we now we have to wait to see those B.A.R. cars finish the race line without problems-can't decide from practise reports

[Kay 0]

The prospect of tomorrow's qualifying session actually being interesting is a good one.

[Taku 0]

The good thing about Mclaren is, they had no performance package for Imola, and that looks like a winning car. Wonder how they will be once tehy reach Spain, as the car is expected have some changes.

I don't agree with Taku, but being impressed with JB. I'm not so sure mate about him mate, I was expecting him to be on the pole considering his blistering practise runs, and he is alomst half a second off Kimi, and that is not good.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

good first point, but they did have a small aero change. mclaren do look like the sleeping giant that is being awaken.

i still remain impressed with button's effort though. it was slower than his best in prac 4 by .4, but faster than any other session of his.

put into perspective, his prac 4 time would have only put him onto p.3 as kimi & alonso are just in a league of their own. so p5 is an impressive effort considering bar's previous quali performances this year. tomorrow he has a realistic chance of moving ahead of both webber and m$.

[ksajoe 0]

That Ferrari did very well to go third having started that early! The is still a good possibility of spliting the front two cars in Quali 2!

We have a race on our hands

[Taku 0]

The prospect of tomorrow's qualifying session actually being interesting is a good one.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

i see the potential for shuffling amongst p's 1&2 and 3-6 and then it's close really all the way down to 13.

good stuff.

[Sato 0]

I don't See Button or Webber getting MS, but they may swap depending on fuel levels etc.

[Taku 0]

true. at bahrain m$ really pushed to get alonso (and failed) so it's unlikely he'll move backwards.

[Monty 0]

That Ferrari did very well to go third having started that early! The is still a good possibility of spliting the front two cars in Quali 2!

We have a race on our hands

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It is a possibilty, and that will happen only if Kimi or FA make a mistake, and the chances are 50-50. Having said that we are talking about kimi and Alonso, and both are very good drivers, and I personally don't expect them to screw it up.

Taku, I agree with your point when you look at JB's performance from your prespective. As you said Kimi and FA are on a different league as fas Imola is concerned

[ksajoe 0]

There will be shuffling across the whole grid - but the only shuffling to take place bewteen 1-3 will be amongst themselves, no one else will touch them. P1 & 2 have a good 3 tenths in the pockect so they will need to seriously c##K up though - but 3 tenths can be snatched somewhere in sector 3 , they should talk to MW, he did some good job there!

[Monty 0]

Yes you are right, Webber drove well in the last sector. I think even Fernando did well in the last sector, as he was down in the first 2 sectors and almost made up for the loss in the last one.

I have to admit, I didn't think much of Webber, but he did quite well.

[Kay 0]

I don't See Button or Webber getting MS, but they may swap depending on fuel levels etc.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well according to MS he didn't make any mistakes, but both Button & Webber said there was room for improvement so they could do, although unlikely.

[ksajoe 0]

With race fuel on board in Quali 2, the good money is on the Ferrari gaining 1 place or at the very worst remaining P3 - from practice evidence, the BAR & Williams are slower in race trim!

[Monty 0]

Between MW, JB & JT the gap is so close, and tommorow we may see a schuffle in the order. I reckon JT may leap frog MW and JB, as he is capable of putting in a flawless lap in qualfying. If that is the case, then JB may have a lot of trouble to get past him and have a shot at the podium.

[Jenson_Rules 0]

no, the Toyota is looking a lot less happy in imola, i think JT pushed real hard to get p6. I think Jb should be able to leapfrog MW, if so, i have no doubt he will be a challenge so long as his machinery survives!!!

[Kay 0]

Well whoever is 5th on the grid has a good chance of overtaking 4th...

[Buttonfan 0]

Well whoever is 5th on the grid has a good chance of overtaking 4th...

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

then most likely button will overtake webber

[Kay 0]

then most likely button will overtake webber

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

That is if they keep the same positions tomorrow, but Button should get a good start if he is on that side of the track.

[Buttonfan 0]

i hope button out qualifies webber, even though i dont want him to get over taken

[Machi 0]

I hope Jenson will hold his 5th place and he'll move up to 4th after the start

[Buttonfan 0]

i want him to have a good qualifying run to show that bar has bounced back