Raikkonen: I could've been on pole

The McLaren driver, last year's winner at the Mediterranean principality, will start from the second row of the grid.

"I'm very happy with the car and was really able to push throughout qualifying," said the Finn.

"I believe that I could have claimed pole position, but then I hit traffic on my second and last flying lap - but that is Monaco.

"We are still on the second row and with a good start and a strong strategy we are definitely in with a chance for a good result."

Teammate Juan Pablo Montoya also believes he could have been higher up the grid if not for the traffic, but the Colombian was also hopeful their race strategy will allow them to fight at the top tomorrow.

"I struggled a bit with traffic as well as understeer, so could probably have qualified a bit higher up the grid," Montoya, sixth fastest, said. "However we have a good car here and a strong strategy for the race, so we will see what happens.

"Third row is not the end of the world, and I'm confident that it should be a good Grand Prix which I'm looking forward to."