Fisichella sets sights on win after 'best' pole.
Having seen Fernando Alonso grab the headlines in Bahrain, Renault team mate Giancarlo Fisichella has made his bid for a share of the limelight by taking pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix.
Although there were concerns about the return of the problem that slowed him in Bahrain before his eventual retirement, Fisichella rewarded the decision not to change his engine and receive a ten place penalty by putting a last flying lap that slipped beneath provisional pole sitter Jenson Button.
Having seen Fernando Alonso grab the headlines in Bahrain, Renault team mate Giancarlo Fisichella has made his bid for a share of the limelight by taking pole position for the Malaysian Grand Prix.
Although there were concerns about the return of the problem that slowed him in Bahrain before his eventual retirement, Fisichella rewarded the decision not to change his engine and receive a ten place penalty by putting a last flying lap that slipped beneath provisional pole sitter Jenson Button.
Fisichella was delighted to take only his third career pole position around the Sepang, but also took the time to dedicate it to Pietro Saitta, who died in a car accident last week. "I want to dedicate this win to Pietro, a childhood friend of mine who died last Sunday," the Italian said. "This is the best pole I have had so far.
"Last year it was thanks to the rain, but today, everybody was up there and fighting hard for it. The engineers made some changes to the car overnight that really improved the balance, and from the first run this morning, I could feel we had the pace to fight for the first two rows. After that, it was a question of doing the best possible job in the qualifying session, and performing to the maximum at the right time."
The last time Fisichella qualified on pole position was at the Australian Grand Prix in 2005, a race he then went on to dominate. It is something he hopes will repeat itself in Malaysia in order to give his championship the boost it needs after his Bahrain difficulties. "We did it, and tomorrow, I will only be thinking about the win."
Pat Symonds was also pleased that Fisichella was able to take pole position in a week that has seen him once again bear the brunt of the Renault reliability issues. "It was fantastic for Giancarlo to grab pole in a very busy and exciting session. His performance this afternoon shows not just the innate performance of the R26, but also his own personal strength of character to bounce back from a difficult weekend in Bahrain."
