Schumacher Eyeing Record Podium Finish

World Champion Michael Schumacher is looking to score a record-breaking podium finish after seizing the 50th pole position of his Formula One career for Sunday's season-ending Japanese Grand Prix.

The final session of a Championship dominated by the Ferrari team was halted for more than an hour after Briton Allan McNish's Toyota veered out of control and crashed heavily backwards through the metal barriers.

When the pitlane reopened, normal service was resumed with Schumacher sealing Ferrari's 10th pole position, and his seventh, of the year and beating his Brazilian teammate Rubens Barrichello by 0.432 of a second.

Schumacher has been on the podium at every race so far in 2002, becoming the first driver to win 10 times in a Championship, and Ferrari are set to equal McLaren's 1988 record of 15 wins in a season. He has also been on pole at Suzuka for five years in a row, winning the last two races there.

If the German clinches a place in the top three tomorrow, he would become the first man in Grand Prix history to complete a whole season finishing every race on the podium.

"If I can be on the podium...it would be quite a thing which sort of shows the team's efforts because the reliability does not come from nothing," said the German. "We have a great car and that allows us to do what we are doing, which is to be faster, after all the development that Bridgestone has done it is no surprise either.

"Basically it is great fun to throw the car through the 'esses' and to do the times we do."