Schumacher: I Would Prefer a Dry Race

World Championship leader Michael Schumacher got the perfect start for his first attempt to try to equal Alain Prost's record for most number of victories as he scored his eighth pole position of the 2001 season at the Silverstone circuit. It was also Schumacher's 40th career pole.

The German driver, who leads the Championship by a massive 31 points over McLaren rival David Coulthard - who was only third today - admitted it was an entertaining session and said he hoped for a dry race on Sunday.

"It was quite an exciting session," admitted Schumacher. "We made small changes to the car before each run, to suit the track and the conditions. It's good to be on pole as it is an advantage and although we are in a strong position in the Championship, there are still seventy points available this season.

"As for the race, I don't really mind what conditions we have, but I would prefer a dry race which is more consistent and safer and I hope it is entertaining for the spectators."

Teammate Rubens Barrichello endured one of his worst qualifying sessions of the season, the Brazilian ending the day more than 1.2 second behind Schumacher in sixth place. As many other drivers, Barrichello blamed the traffic for not being able to improve in the final moments.

"It was a very difficult session," said Barrichello. "But as we all went out a bit late in the hope that track conditions would improve, it was predictable that there would be a lot of traffic for the last two runs. Unfortunately, that's exactly what happened.

"Bernoldi, who was on his in lap blocked me twice, which prevented me from improving my time. It's a real shame, because I had a well balanced car. Tomorrow's race will be difficult, given that I am starting from the third row. The uncertainty over the weather could make for an action packed afternoon."