Massa thrilled after 'perfect' lap

The Ferrari driver secured the first ever night pole after posting a best time of 1:44.519, clinching a dominant first place and his fifth pole of the 2008 season.

Massa who is one point behind championship leader Lewis Hamilton, will start one place ahead of the Briton, who could do nothing to match the Brazilian's pace.

Massa finished over six tenths of a second ahead of Hamilton.

"The car was perfect, so nice to drive smoothly, and then I managed to do a perfect lap, so that always helps when you have a good car," said Massa. "I did not make a single mistake, it was a great achievement.

"It is just a great feeling, coming to the last corner I knew I could not make any mistakes, so I just made corner by corner perfectly, not making a single mistake and when I came to the last corner I thought 'take it easy' but I couldn't!

"So I took it quick anyway. It was so fantastic. It is the most incredible feeling you can feel as a racing driver. To achieve what you want is always a great achievement.

"It is pretty tough, a very difficult track, so to get every corner right is really, really difficult."

The Ferrari driver is now looking to secure victory in the first Formula One race at night, and to take the championship lead with it.

"It is a very important race for F1. It is interesting and a very important race on the calendar. If we can win the race it will be an even more fantastic a feeling than after qualifying."