SAO PAULO, Brazil — Felipe Massa took the pole Saturday for the decisive Brazilian Grand Prix, with overall leader Lewis Hamilton beside him in position to become Formula One’s youngest champion.
Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso — Hamilton’s rivals for the title — will start in the second row, with Raikkonen third and Alonso fourth.
“I think we sit in good position,” Hamilton said. “It’s a good place for us to start.”
Massa, the defending champion, drove his Ferrari around the 2.6-mile counter-clockwise Interlagos track in 1 minute, 11.931 seconds. The Brazilian was .151 faster than Hamilton and .391 faster than Ferrari teammate Raikkonen. Alonso, Hamilton’s McLaren teammate, timed 1:12.356.
“This is sensational,” Massa said. “And hopefully the guys behind me will have a good fight. It will be very nice for these (fans) to watch a good race. Hopefully I can go for the victory.”
The Brazilian GP on Sunday will decide the tightest F1 race for the championship in 21 years. The 22-year-old Hamilton has 107 points, four more than McLaren teammate Alonso and seven more than Raikkonen. A win is worth 10 points.
A top-two finish for Hamilton will guarantee the Briton becomes the first rookie to win the drivers’ championship and F1’s youngest champion, surpassing Alonso’s feat in 2005. A title also would make Hamilton the first British F1 champion since Damon Hill in 1996.
“I am quite confident and relaxed for tomorrow and I know what I have to do to win the championship,” Hamilton said. “My focus is not on winning the race, but the title.”
Fifteen of the past 16 winners have started in the front row this season. In Interlagos, front-row starters have won every race since 2004.
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