Raikkonen on pole as title rival falter
Finn Kimi Raikkonen will lead on the Hungarian grand prix
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Saturday, 05, Aug 2006 10:40
Finn Kimi Raikkonen grabbed pole position on the grid for tomorrow's Hungarian grand prix while defending champion Fernando Alonso and his nearest challenger Michael Schumacher will continue their duel well down the grid.
Raikkonen secured his second consecutive pole with just seconds to go in the final qualifying session as he recorded a last-ditch lap of one minute 19.599 seconds.
Both Schumacher and Alonso suffered time penalties in a fractious qualifying session leaving them to vie for control of the drivers' championship from 11th and 15th place on the grid respectively.
The German will rue his indiscipline as he let his 24-year-old rival off the hook, conceding the same two-second time penalty that had left the Spaniard at his mercy.
Seven-time world champion Schumacher overtook two cars while under a red flag in the final free practice, throwing away what would have been a strong starting position and an excellent chance to eat deep into the 11-point gap between the pair.
"I'm incredibly angry, but I have to blame myself," he said.
Meanwhile Jenson Button's frustrations continued as his notoriously unreliable Honda burst into flames and required an engine change which cost the driver a ten place penalty that took him down to 14th.
At the head of the race Schumacher's Ferrari team-mate Felipe Massa completes the front row with Rubens Barrichello third and Pedro de la Rosa fourth.