Kovalainen pleased despite Renault's form

The world champions, pole-setters and race winners at Sepang for the past two years, could not make it to the top ten shootout today, with their drivers struggling for grip with the R27 car.

Kovalainen was 11th quickest, although the Finn claimed he had the speed to be in the top ten. The rookie, who endured a torrid debut in Australian, outqualified his teammate Giancarlo Fisichella.

Despite Renault's poor day, Kovalainen was happy to bounce back from the disappointment of Melbourne.

"The grip levels were improving with every run, and I think we had the pace to get into the top ten this afternoon," said Kovalainen. "But I didn't manage to put my best three sectors together into one lap, so it's a little bit frustrating to end up eleventh - and outside the final shootout.

"From a personal point of view, though, this was a much better qualifying session for me compared to Melbourne. I think our race will be with Williams, Toyota and Red Bull tomorrow - and I am optimistic that I can do a good job."

Fisichella will start from 12th position after complaining about his car's handling.

"The car has been tricky to drive all weekend: the balance is not too bad, but we are lacking grip, and that makes the handling quite unpredictable, which means it is hard to put a clean lap together," he said. "Just like in Melbourne, we are a long way from the leaders, and we know that we need to improve.

"Looking to tomorrow, it will be a tough race, as always - and we are starting quite far back. We need to make the right calls on strategy, and see how things unfold."