Massa makes late run for pole win in Turkey

Istanbul, Turkey (Sports Network) - Ferrari's Felipe Massa won the pole for Sunday's Grand Prix of Turkey edging out Lewis Hamilton on the final lap. The No.5 Ferrari circled the long 3.317-mile Istanbul Autodrom road course in one minute, 27.329 seconds.
The pole victory was Massa's fifth of the season and seventh of his Formula One career. Winning the pole has proven to be important in 2007 as seven of the 11 races have been won by the man who led the field to the opening green flag.
Starting on the front row with Massa will be McLaren's Hamilton, who posted a second-best time of 1:27.373.
Kimi Raikkonen (1:27.546) and Fernando Alonso (1:27.574) will make up row two.
The first of three qualifying sessions was won by Raikkonen and saw the elimination of six drivers, including Ralf Schumacher. The younger brother of seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher is thought to be in trouble at Toyota and on the way out the door.
The second session was won by Alonso with Jenson Button, Mark Webber and Rubens Barrichello among those left by the wayside.
The final session was a battle for the pole between the two McLarens and two Ferraris. On the final lap Hamilton put up the time to beat and seconds later Massa did just that. Alonso was the last of the challengers to come across the start/finish line, but he could only manage the fourth-best time.
Despite a 15-point manufacturer's penalty in Hungary, McLaren still has control of both the drivers and manufacturers championship. Behind the super rookie Hamilton and the two-time defending World Champion Alonso the team holds a 19-point edge for the manufacturers trophy. They also have a stranglehold on the drivers championship.
Hamilton, who has only once finished worse than third one time in 11 Formula One starts, owns a seven-point lead in the standings over teammate Alonso. His lead is 20 points over rival Ferrari's No.1 driver Raikkonen and 21 points over Massa.
Istanbul is a popular circuit for the drivers. It's fast with long straights. It has several different corner combinations including elevation changes and, of course, it has Turn Eight.
"It is probably the most difficult corner in the whole championship," said Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella.
The race is scheduled to drop the green flag on Sunday at 8 a.m. (et).