After a delay of over an hour, qualifying finally got underway at the Interlagos circuit.
This year’s championship took another twist as Rubens Barrichello took pole position sending his home fans into hysterics, while Jenson Button floundered in fourteenth.
Mark Webber was a close second in his Red Bull, with Adrian Sutil third for Force India.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 1. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes 1:24.100 1:21.659 1:19.576 2. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:24.722 1:20.803 1:19.668 3. Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:24.447 1:20.753 1:19.912 4. Trulli Toyota 1:24.621 1:20.635 1:20.097 5. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:23.047 1:21.378 1:20.168 6. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:24.591 1:20.701 1:20.250 7. Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:22.828 1:20.368 1:20.326 8. Kubica BMW-Sauber 1:23.072 1:21.147 1:20.631 9. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:23.161 1:20.427 1:20.674 10. Alonso Renault 1:24.842 1:21.657 1:21.422 11. Glock Toyota 1:24.335 1:21.960 12. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:24.773 1:22.231 13. Grosjean Renault 1:24.394 1:22.477 14. Button Brawn-Mercedes 1:24.297 1:22.504 15. Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes 1:24.645 16. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1:25.009 17. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:25.052 18. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:25.192 19. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber 1:25.515 20. Fisichella Ferrari 1:40.703