Felipe Massa fourth and Kimi Raikkonen sixteenth was the less than perfect result of the first qualifying session of the 2008 season.

Massa fourth and Raikkonen sixteenth was the less than perfect result of the first qualifying session of the 2008 season. It was also the first qualifying session run under the new sporting regulations that meant there was no longer any need for the fuel-burning laps which were a rather dull feature of the 2007 Q3 session. This year, instead of adding fuel prior to the race based on the number of laps completed in Q3, the drivers simply all start the session with the fuel load that must then last them all the way to their first pit stop in Sunday's Grand Prix.

From an onlooker's perspective, the difficulty is in knowing what fuel loads everyone is running: run light, qualifying high up the grid, but make an early pit-stop, or run heavier, qualify a bit less well but running further in the race. It is a fascinating mathematical puzzle, further complicated here in Melbourne by the fact the circuit lap time is heavily fuel dependent.

Lewis Hamilton had the honour of taking the first pole of the season for McLaren Mercedes, with Robert Kubica joining him on the front row in his BMW-Sauber, despite almost going off the track on his quick lap. Row two sees McLaren new-boy Heikki Kovalainen secure his best ever F1 qualifying in third place just ahead of Felipe Massa for Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, who struggled to get his Bridgestone tyres up to the correct operating temperature when stuck in traffic on his out-lap.

Row three features the second BMW Sauber of Nick Heidfeld in fifth spot with the Toyota of Jarno Trulli outside him. And what of Raikkonen? The reigning world champion had set a comfortable sixth fastest time in Q1, but then on his in-lap, a fuel pump issue meant he had stop prior to the entrance of pit lane. Technically, the Finn was banned from taking any further part in qualifying as the track marshals had to push his car after it stopped. But this had no effect on the final outcome, as the problem could not have been fixed in time for him to continue, even if he had returned to the garage under his own power.

So tomorrow, after months of speculation and analysis of winter testing results, the eleven teams and twenty two drivers finally line up on a race grid to establish the first real performance chart of the season. One driver on the second row and the other on the eighth: these are the positions the two Ferraris will occupy on the grid for tomorrow's Australian Grand Prix. "This is definitely not the result we were expecting," commented Stefano Domenicali. "We have to work out exactly what caused Kimi's car to stop and tomorrow he will have a hard fight all through the race to move up the order. Starting from the second row, Felipe will be able to show what he can do in a race in which reliability and strategy will as usual play a key role."

Felipe Massa: "I failed to get the most out of my final set of tyres for the day, because I had traffic on my out-lap and this meant I was unable to get the tyres up to temperature. I am happy with the handling of the car, which is well balanced and we know we can run at a good race pace. It will be a very tough race, especially as we can expect high temperatures. Anything can happen and I think I can fight for the very top places."

Kimi Raikkonen: "Clearly I am disappointed. A few corners from the end of my in-lap, I had a problem with the electronic fuel pump which forced me to stop near the pit lane and so it was impossible for me to get back to the garage to try and fix the problem. These things happen, but it's definitely not the best way to start the season. Now we must try to do our best to pick up some points tomorrow, because it is important to score something in every race."

Luca Baldisserri: "I got the impression I was watching a replay of last year's qualifying, but an even worse version. We have a car on the second row and one which did not manage to take part in the second session because of an electrical fuel pump problem. We have to look at the data and the components to find out exactly what happened. As for the way the final session went, we knew from this winter that we would struggle a bit to do quick times over a single lap and that difficulty cropped up this afternoon. However, we are competitive in terms of race pace and so we can be reasonably confident about tomorrow, even if Kimi clearly faces an uphill struggle, given his grid position."