Lewis Hamilton rocketed to pole position for the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix after a mighty display from the 2008 World champion.
The McLaren driver was on top form throughout the session and was untouchable as he set a lap over half a second faster than his nearest competitor, Sebastian Vettel.
Mark Webber was third in the sister Red Bull with the new World champion, Jenson Button, back in fifth.
Qualifying saw some big casualties, with Fernando Alonso being eliminated in Q1 and Kimi Raikkonen missing out on the top-ten shootout.
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3 1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1:39.873 1:39.695 1:40.948 2. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1:40.666 1:39.984 1:41.615 3. Webber Red Bull-Renault 1:40.667 1:40.272 1:41.726 4. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes 1:40.574 1:40.421 1:41.786 5. Button Brawn-Mercedes 1:40.378 1:40.148 1:41.892 6. Trulli Toyota 1:40.517 1:40.373 1:41.897 7. Kubica BMW-Sauber 1:40.520 1:40.545 1:41.992 8. Heidfeld BMW-Sauber 1:40.558 1:40.635 1:42.343 9. Rosberg Williams-Toyota 1:40.842 1:40.661 1:42.583 10. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:40.908 1:40.430 1:42.713 11. Raikkonen Ferrari 1:41.100 1:40.726 12. Kobayashi Toyota 1:41.035 1:40.777 13. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes 1:40.808 1:40.983 14. Nakajima Williams-Toyota 1:41.096 1:41.148 15. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 1:41.503 1:41.689 16. Alonso Renault 1:41.667 17. Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes 1:41.701 18. Sutil Force India-Mercedes 1:41.863 19. Grosjean Renault 1:41.950 20. Fisichella Ferrari 1:42.184
