Second pole for BMS Scuderia Italia

The Italian team is currently lying second in the Teams' championship.

A slightly reduced field of 19 cars will take part in Sunday's penultimate round of the 1999 season.

With triple-winner DAMS absent, the Ferraris were left to fight it out in the SR1 class.

Qualifying saw a close fight, with the top four cars within a second of each other.

For the first part of the session, Championship leaders Collard and Sospiri held the provisional pole, but half-way through Moncini and Pescatori moved into the lead.

The JB Giesse drivers were unable to respond to the challenge, as Collard put the Ferrari 333SP into the tyre barriers in middle of the Estoril corner.

'I missed the brake pedal,' Collard said. 'It's not going to be an easy race.'

'The other Ferrari is very fast, and the field is close. But things should go all right for us.'

A good finish could see Collard and Sospiri secure their second consecutive championship this weekend, in both Drivers' and Teams' classifications.

Third fastest was the second BMS Scuderia Italia car, driven by the father and son team of Zadra and Zadra.

They were followed by the second JB Giesse Ferrari, driven this weekend by JB regular Mauro Baldi and Frenchman Jerome Policand.

The Riley & Scott Europe car, with Philippe Gache and Frank Lagorce at the wheel, improved steadily throughout the session, and will start in sixth place.

'At long last we have a reliable engine, but we still need to work on the set-up. We are effectively starting our season as everyone else is finishing theirs,' Gache explained.

In the SR2 class the Nurburgring winners, Amati and Lancelotti will start from pole in their Tampolli RS2.

They were followed by the Siliprandi Lucchini Alfa Romeo, with Owen and Smitson third in the Redman Bright Pilbeam.