Button claims Pole in Australia
Jenson Button was shaking with excitement after claiming pole position for the Australian Grand Prix with a scorching lap at Albert Park today.
The Honda driver finally got the better of the dominant Renaults to post the quickest time in qualifying for the third pole of his career.
Formula One’s knock-out qualifying was given a new twist with rain in Melbourne and a breathless Button savoured a “special feeling” after his lap.
He said: “It was manic. The whole day has been manic with the weather.
“We were a bit off the pace when the qualifying started so to finally get this pole position is fantastic.
“It was a very hectic session. Trying to get a lap time in is difficult and it’s a special feeling being on pole here.
“I’m still shaking through the excitement. With the two red flags, it was really difficult to stay calm. To get that lap at the end was a great feeling.”
Button faces a double-barrelled Renault blast from the start line tomorrow though, with Giancarlo Fisichella and world champion Fernando Alonso second and third respectively.
Renault are famed for their fast starts and Button concedes he cannot afford even the slightest error if he is to win a Grand Prix at the 103rd attempt.
“We are in the best position we can be,” said the 26-year-old. “We have just got to hope we get a relatively clean start.
“The guys from Honda seem ecstatic but more importantly for them is to have a win tomorrow.
“We know how competitive the Renaults are and we know we have to have a faultless race tomorrow.
“We are confident we can do that. We haven’t won a race yet and our aim is to do that, but it’s never easy when you’ve got a team like Renault.”
Alonso, who leads the championship after a win and a second place, clocked the best qualifying result of his season but admitted frustration at missing pole.
The Spaniard hit traffic on his flying lap, leaving him on the second row.
“It’s okay,” he said. “It’s a little bit frustrating because I didn’t manage to complete my lap. Nick Heidfeld was in front of me and I lost half a second in the last sector.
“The car performed really well. I am happy with the balance so we are extremely confident for the race.
“It is my best qualifying of the year. I won the first race and was second in Malaysia so hopefully I can fight for the win.”
Kimi Raikkonen starts fourth for McLaren, over half a second down on Button’s time.
Juan Pablo Montoya ruined his chances of a late surge for pole position when he spun with just two minutes remaining. The McLaren driver’s earlier efforts proved good enough for fifth, though.
Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher gave an improved performance to claim sixth, one ahead of local hero Mark Webber in his Williams.
Former world champion Michael Schumacher did not even make it to the pole position shoot-out after being knocked out in the second session.
The Ferrari driver was caught out by rain and will start 10th after missing the cut by just 0.004secs, helped by a 10-place grid penalty for BMW-Sauber’s Jacques Villeneuve.
Scotsman David Coulthard missed the cut in his Red Bull, earning 11th place on the grid, while highly-rated rookie Nico Rosberg was down in 14th for Williams.
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