29.05.2004 Michael Schumacher bounced back in style from his dramas in Monte Carlo to claim his 60th pole position: FERRARI qualifying report AND times from the Nurburgring

Michael Schumacher bounced back in style from his Monaco Grand Prix dramas to storm to his 60th F1 pole position at the Nurburgring earlier today, over half a second clear of Takuma Sato in the BAR who lined up on the outside of the front row.

Monaco winner Jarno Trulli claimed the third place on the grid, fractions ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the resurgent McLaren-Mercedes, while Jenson Button's BAR and Fernando Alonso in the second Renault rounded out the top six.

It is the fifth pole position of the season for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, all of them set by Michael Schumacher.

Tomorrow will be the fourteenth time that a Ferrari driver starts from the top slot at this circuit and the third time for Schumacher. For the Scuderia, the total now stands at 171.

Jean Todt: 'We dedicate this pole to Umberto Agnelli, who would have been proud of Michael’s achievement today. We are pleased to renew our acquaintance with pole after Michael’s run of five was interrupted in Monaco. All things considered, Rubens also did well and is in with a chance of a good result tomorrow.

'There are so many parameters to take into consideration: the start, the strategy, tyre wear. In this area Bridgestone has provided us with tyres that are very consistent not only in terms of performance, but also reliability, without which you are nowhere and that also applies to Shell, who I thank for their work on the crucial area of our lubricants.'

Michael Schumacher: 'I had the perfect lap, but I am surprised at the gap to the others, although I am not surprised to be on pole as I expected to be very competitive here. It was nice not to be first on the road in pre-qualifying as that helped in being able to run towards the end of the session.

'As for the race, I am looking forward to it, as there is always some extra motivation from the fans at a home race. It is also good to be racing so soon after Monaco to put that disappointment behind me. Although it is difficult to get the car perfectly balanced at this track, I seem able to do consistent lap times and I am confident we have made the right decision on tyres and hopefully we can win the race tomorrow.'

Rubens Barrichello: 'Apart from Michael, who did a great time, we are all within a few tenths of one another, so it only took very little to be higher or lower on the grid. I think we have a car and tyre combination that will be very competitive in the race and so I am reasonably confident about tomorrow. It will be a tough race and we have everything in place to get a good result.'

Ross Brawn: 'Michael had a fantastic qualifying session today with a really unbelievable lap! We were a little bit unsure about the performance of the tyres on the first laps, so this morning we worked a lot to get the best out of them in this area. Michael did an impeccable job.

'Rubens made a few mistakes, which given how close the times were, cost him a few places on the grid. We are happy with the handling of the cars and tyres which are performing very consistently. We are looking forward with optimism to tomorrow’s race.'

Pre-qualifying session, Michael Schumacher: 2nd 1.28.278 3 laps chassis 239, Rubens Barrichello 7th 1.29.014 3 laps chassis 235, Temperatures: air 18/21°C, track 29/34°C

Qualifying session, Michael Schumacher: 1st 1.28.351 3 laps chassis 239, Rubens Barrichello: 7th 1.29.353 3 laps chassis 235, Temperatures: air 21°C, track 34°C