April 2, 2006	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 3, 1427

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MELBOURNE, April 1: Britain’s Jenson Button, yet to win a Grand Prix in more than 100 race starts, claimed the pole position for Sunday’s Australian Formula One GP after qualifying on Saturday.

Button posted the fastest time of one minute 25.229 seconds to take the favoured position inside last year’s race winner Giancarlo Fisichella on the front row of the race grid.

Button, who is lining up for his 103rd GP, claimed the pole just 57 seconds before the end of the third and final segment of the qualifying session.

World champion and standings leader Fernando Alonso was third fastest in 1:25.778 ahead of McLaren’s Kimi Raikkonen (1:25.822).

Raikkonen’s team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya will start on the inside of the third row with Ralf Schumacher.

Australia’s great hope Mark Webber posted the seventh-fastest time (1:26.937) just ahead of German Nick Heidfeld in 1:27.579.

Seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher will start in 11th on the grid after being relegated following the second segment of qualifying.

His collegue Felipe Massa came off on a bend forcing a red flag to stop the second session with over five minutes left.

Schumacher left his team’s garage with a brake cooler pipe still attached to his car in the rush to get back out on the track and post a faster lap time in the minutes remaining.

But his 1:28.228 only got him the 11th fastest time and forced him into 11th position on the grid with two-time Australian GP winner David Coulthard of Scotland in 12th.

Brazil’s Rubens Barrichello was shunted to back of the grid after the first 15-minute segment of qualifying.

Barrichello clocked the 17th fastest time (1:29.943) and as one of the six slowest times dropped out of the remainder qualifying session.

Starting grid

First row: 1. Jenson Button (GBR) Honda 1:25.229, 2. Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA) Renault 1:25.635

Second row: 3. Fernando Alonso (ESP) Renault 1:25.778, 4. Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) McLaren-Mercedes 1:25.822

Third row: 5. Juan Pablo Montoya (COL) McLaren-Mercedes 1:25.976, 6. Ralf Schumacher (GER) Toyota 1:26.612

Fourth row: 7. Mark Webber (AUS) Williams-BMW 1:26.937, 8. Nick Heidfeld (GER) BMW Sauber 1:27.579

Fifth row: 9. Jarno Trulli (ITA) Toyota, 10. Michael Schumacher (GER) Ferrari 1:26.718

Sixth row: 11. David Coulthard (GBR) Red Bull 1:27.023, 12. Vitantonio Liuzzi (ITA) Toro Rosso 1:27.219

Seventh row: 13. Christian Klien (AUT) Red Bull 1:27.591, 14. Nico Rosberg (GER) Williams-BMW 1:29.422

Eight row: 15. Felipe Massa (BRA) Ferrari, 16. Rubens Barrichello (BRA) Honda 1:29.943

Ninth row: 17. Christijan Albers (NED) Midland 1:30.226, 18. Scott Speed (USA) Toro Rosso 1:30.426

10th row: 19. Jacques Villeneuve (CAN) BMW Sauber 1:29.239, 20. Tiago Monteiro (POR) Midland 1:30.709

11th row: 21. Takuma Sato (JPN) Super Aguri F1 Team 1:32.279, 22. Yuji Ide (JPN) Super Aguri F1 Team 1:36.164.—AFP