Michael wants to put smiles on US faces

The four-times world champion shrugged off a determined challenge from the McLaren-Mercedes of his old sparring partner Mika Hakkinen to notch up his 10th pole start of 2001. One more victory this season will equal 1992 world champion Nigel Mansell's record of nine wins in a year, which Schumacher has already matched in '95.

Schumacher carved two-tenths of second out of Hakkinen's time just as the McLaren ace looked to be heading for his first pole in 13 months. The Finn put in one of his best qualifying performances of the season to start from the front row for the first time in five races, with BMW-Williams duo Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya third and fourth.

A final bid to grab pole by Schumacher's Ferrari team mate Rubens Barrichello came to nothing and he had to be content with fifth. But at least he starts directly in front of the second McLaren-Mercedes of David Coulthard as he bids to close the Scot's three point lead in the battle for runners-up spot in the drivers' championship.

Schumacher faced an anxious final few minutes of the session as he climbed from his Ferrari with one run unused and told the team he had reached the maximum of the car's capacity. "As far as qualifying is concerned I couldn't have gone any better than this," he said. "You know when you have reached the maximum, but I am pretty confident for the race."

The German grabbed his 42nd pole despite oil pressure problems in the morning, which left him stranded on the track and required an engine change over lunch. "I was worried in case it might be a little new and tight and not as good, " Schumacher said. "But it worked out better in the end. The car has been going pretty well all weekend and we have continually improved it so things are looking positive.

"I hope do the same as last year and win the race. We have lots of supporters in the US and obviously with all that happened we would like to put a smile back on faces of people and put on a good show - and do that by winning the race."

Ralf Schumacher admitted that it was an uncharacteristic slip that cost him a front row slot. "I made a mistake at Turn Four," explained the BMW-Williams ace. "I simply braked too late, locked a front wheel and couldn't get the turn. But we have struggled all weekend to get a decent balance. We worked through it but it's going to a difficult race. We've had circuits where the car is perfect but here it is a bit more difficult."