Fernando Alonso has once again qualified in fifth place for Sunday’s Brazilian Grand Prix, meaning the Spaniard has now started in the position for nine times out of 19 race weekends in 2011. The Champion of 2005 and 2006 will set off from behind the respective pairs of Red Bull and McLaren cars.
“My subscription to fifth place has been extended for one more Saturday!” the Ferrari driver said after qualifying. “This time, however, getting to my classic starting place on the grid was a bit more of a struggle than usual. We are not very pleased with the balance of the car and we were expecting a very competitive Mercedes.
“However, in Q3 we got much closer to the McLarens than we could have expected, while the first of the Mercedes was left a few tenths back. What this means is that we managed to get a little bit more out of it than our potential would indicate. I certainly can’t say the way qualifying went was much of a surprise. If it really rains tomorrow, it will be a very exciting and open race; no-one really knows how competitive they can be in the wet.
“The perfect recipe for the last race of the year? The four in front of us stop so Felipe (Massa) and I are ahead of the rest!”
Alonso has never won in Brazil, although both of his titles were decided in the country.
Further post-qualifying feelings from Ferrari:
Massa: Anything can happen if it rains
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| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. |  S. Vettel | Red Bull | 01:11.918 | 17 |
| 2. | M. Webber | Red Bull | 01:12.099 | 16 |
| 3. | J. Button | McLaren | 01:12.283 | 18 |
| 4. | L. Hamilton | McLaren | 01:12.480 | 22 |
| 5. | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 01:12.591 | 22 |
| 6. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 01:13.050 | 21 |
| 7. | F. Massa | Ferrari | 01:13.068 | 18 |
| 8. | A. Sutil | Force India | 01:13.298 | 23 |
| 9. | B. Senna | Lotus Renault | 01:13.761 | 29 |
| 10. | M. Schumacher | Mercedes | no time | 18 |
| Full results | ||||
| Fernando Alonso | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| More Fernando Alonso photos | |||
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