Formula One:Rain or shine at Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix, world champion Fernando Alonso is confident he can earn the victory which will take him a step closer to successfully defending his title after qualifying on pole position.
The Spaniard posted the fastest time in wet conditions at the Shanghai International Circuit to earn Renault their 50th pole position in the sport and Alonso will be joined at the front of the grid by team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella.
Alonso leads the drivers' standings by two points from seven-time champion Michael Schumacher, who struggled in the rain to qualify in sixth and the German is the only user of Bridgestone tyres to crack the top 10.
"If we have a normal race on Sunday in dry conditions we will be very strong, but if it is wet we are strong as well, but it is always dangerous and more difficult to finish the race sometimes," said Alonso.
"We know the championship is tight and it will be extremely difficult but we are very optimistic, we are very confident.
"We are quick in the dry; we are quick in the wet. The team knows how to win at these circuits as well. There is no need to be nervous."
Alonso's fastest lap was over a second quicker than that posted by third-placed qualifier Rubens Barrichello in the Honda, who recorded exactly the same time as his British team-mate Jenson Button.
Barrichello, however, takes third spot ahead of Button as a result of recording the time first.
"When you see the time is exactly the same as your team mate that shows what the team can expect," said the Brazilian.
"We took a lot out of the car and it's a little bit down to luck to do that but after I had my spin in Q2 and recovered from that, that pumped me up so much."
Barrichello was one of many drivers to lose control of his car in the slippery conditions in a difficult session that saw the track hit by several showers.
Kimi Raikkonen continued to have problems of his own, losing a wing mirror during the session before finishing fifth and he will start the race beside Schumacher.
Pedro de la Rosa clocked the seventh-fastest time, just ahead of Nick Heidfeld in the BMW Sauber who in turn was placed in front of his team-mate Robert Kubica. The Pole will start in ninth position beside Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos.
Scott Speed qualified a respectable 11th in his Toro Rosso and will start alongside Red Bull's David Coulthard.
Felipe Massa's penalty means Tonio Liuzzi will be in 13th position in his Toro Rosso alongside Williams driver Mark Webber, who will have team-mate Nico Rosberg starting in 15th place in the row behind.
Rosberg will be joined by Jarno Trulli after a disappointing day for Toyota that also saw Ralf Schumacher qualify in 16th place.
The Spyker pairing of Christijan Albers and Tiago Monteiro will fill the next two slots with Super Aguri's Takuma Sato in 18th. His team-mate, Sakon Yamamoto will start on the back row of the grid alongside Massa.