For the first time in F1, a Pole on pole

Kubica clocked 1 minute, 33.096 seconds in the final 10-minute session. Massa, who won both of Friday’s practice sessions, had 1:33.123. Kubica, who has eight championship points, finished second at the Malaysian GP last month.

Hamilton leads the drivers’ standings with 14 points, three more than world champion Raikkonen and Nick Heidfeld of BMW Sauber.

Massa, with zero points from the first two races, got stuck behind traffic as he went out for his final qualifying lap.

Teams went to a lighter fuel load and softer tyres by the second session with the track temperature peaking at 44 degrees Celsius. But gusting wind and cloud cover lowered the temperature for the final session, affecting teams’ strategy.

Giancarlo Fisichella could not make the cut for the second qualifying session and the Force India driver will start 18th on the grid for Sunday’s race, with his team mate Adrian Sutil at 20th.

Starting grid

Bahrain Grand Prix, Sakhir

1 Robert Kubica (POL) BMW-Sauber 1:33.096

2 Felipe Massa(BRA) Ferrari 1:33.123

3 Lewis Hamilton (GBR) McLaren 1:33.292

4 Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) Ferrari 1:33.418

5 Heikki Kovalainen (FIN) McLaren 1:33.488

6 Nick Heidfeld (GER) BMW-Sauber 1:33.737

7 Jarno Trulli (ITA) Toyota 1:33.994

8 Nico Rosberg (GER) Williams 1:34.015

9 Jenson Button (GBR) Honda 1:35.057

10 Fernando Alonso (ESP) Renault 1:35.115

18 Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA) Force India 1:33.501

20 Adrian Sutil (GER) Force India 1:33.845