Sebastien Vettel and Mark Webber will start tomorrow’s Australian Formula One Grand Prix on the front row after posting the fastest ever times recorded at the Albert Park track.
Webber desperately wanted to claim pole position but it was his younger German teammate that claimed the prize with a blistering lap time of 1:23.919. Vettel was the first, and to date, only driver to break the 1:24 barrier at Albert Park. However, local hopes remain high for Webber who was at the pointy end of the field all day. He was quickest in Free Practice 3, and qualified second with a time of 1:24.035.
Both Red Bull men were under Michael Schumacher’s previous lap record at the Melbourne street circuit of 1:24.125 set in 2004.
Tomorrow represents Mark Webber’s best chance yet to win his home Grand Prix and speaking after qualifying he was disappointed not to have claimed pole, “I would love to be on pole, it is good for the team both of us are up there, but there is always a bit where you can get a bit more out of it, overall it would be nice to be one place further up,” he said.
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso will be the first of the non-Red Bull challengers, followed by McLaren’s Jenson Button and second Ferrari driver Felipe Massa.
[Pic: Getty Images]