Giancarlo Fisichella has stormed to his first pole position in 12 months at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
The Renault driver pulled out a brilliant lap at sweltering Sepang to pip Jenson Button’s Honda, with a flying Nico Rosberg in a surprise third place for Williams.
Fisichella suffered an engine problem that curtailed his race a week ago, so it was sweet for the Italian to shine while others around him suffered.
Michael Schumacher was the biggest casualty on a weekend littered with engine changes as the new V8s were tested to their limits. The German will start in the midfield despite qualifying on the second row.
With Schumacher, Barrichello, Ferrari’s Felipe Massa, Red Bull racer David Coulthard and probably Toyota’s Ralf Schumacher all demoted after their engine changes, there was still confusion as to the exact starting order for the race. A definitive grid will not be known until an hour before the off.