Big guns to resume battle

Sakhir, Bahrain: It looks like yet another tussle for the top spot between the McLarens and the Ferraris during the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix - the third round of the Formula One World Championship today.

Friday's times during the two practice sessions and yesterday's third session and qualifying were an indicator of how things are likely to progress as the season moves on.

Defending world champion Fernando Alonso won in Kuala Lumpur last week, while Kimi Raikkonen had taken the top honours in Australia during the season opener.

Going into the third round, the defending world champion from Spain has a two-point advantage over Ferrari's 'Iceman' in the drivers' championship, while the sensational Lewis Hamilton is in the third spot with 14 points and Nick Heidfeld is in fourth with 10.

At the end of the three-stage qualifying, Massa had the quickest time of one minute, 32.652 seconds to give Bridgestone their 100th pole position, while Hamilton took his first-ever front row position on the grid with 1:32.935. Ferrari's Raikkonen was third best with 1:33.131 and Alonso followed over his shoulder in fourth with a 1:33.192.

"I will be more aggressive on the first turn and that I think will be the trick to keep them [the McLarens] away," Massa said. Massa had also taken pole in Kuala Lumpur last week, only to be denied the top spot by Alonso.

"Until now, I have been unable to show my true potential. I am pretty much confident that I can do much better than what we achieved last week in Kuala Lumpur," the Brazilian added.

Bit of traffic

His teammate Raikkonen was not pleased with his third place on the grid. "There was a bit of traffic and I could not do the time I would have liked," the Finn said.

Hamilton was pleased with the show, displacing the defending world champion in the bargain. "I think we have managed to narrow down the gap between us and the Ferraris...it will be a tough race tomorrow," the Brit driver predicted.

With the McLarens and the Ferraris seeking to dominate, the rest of the teams seem to be trying their best in narrowing the gap from these big guns. However, the top two would do well to keep a close watch on the smaller pretenders such as the BMW Saubers run by Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica.

Ferrari theme park in Abu Dhabi

Ferrari has signed a contract with Abu Dhabi-based property company Aldar to create a Ferrari theme park within the Yas Island project.

The signing took place yesterday at the Sakhir race track in the presence of Ferrari CEO Jean Todt and Aldar CEO Ronald Barrott.

"The agreement strengthens our ties with Abu Dhabi, which is one of our shareholders and a sponsor of the Scuderia through the Mubadala company," Todt said.

The UAE capital will host the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix in 2009. "We will have something for all the family," Todt promised.

Work on the Yas Island has already started and the Ferrari Park, which will cover 250,000 square metres, is expected to be one of the main attractions. It will feature an interesting concept in terms of fun and entertainment and boast 24 attractions aimed at the family.

RESULTS

1. Felipe Massa (Brazil) Ferrari 1:32.652;

2. Lewis Hamilton (Britain) McLaren 1:32.935

3. Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Ferrari 1:33.131;

4. Fernando Alonso (Spain) McLaren 1:33.192;

5. Nick Heidfeld (Germany) BMW Sauber 1:33.404;

6. Robert Kubica (Poland) BMW Sauber 1:33.710;

7. Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy) Renault 1:34.056;

8. Mark Webber (Australia) RedBull-Renault 1:34.106;

9. Jarno Trulli (Italy) Toyota 1:34.154;

10. Nico Rosberg (Germany) Williams-Toyota 1:34.399.

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