Massa, who trails Hamilton by a point in the drivers' championship, beat Lewis by more than half a second although it's expected that he is running a lighter fuel strategy.

The drivers believe overtaking will be tough in the Singapore Grand Prix, which made qualifying all the more crucial. It's going to be a great race and if it rains that is going to be a decisive factor and also a cause for concern as with the race taking place at night it's going to make conditions very difficult. With the top two racers at the front of the grid and not much between them this is going to the wire.

Times
01 F. Massa Ferrari 1:44.801
02 L. Hamilton McLaren 1:45.465
03 K. Räikkönen Ferrari 1:45.617
04 R. Kubica BMW 1:45.779
05 H. Kovalainen McLaren 1:45.873
06 S. Vettel Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:46.244
07 T. Glock Toyota 1:46.328
08 N. Rosberg Williams 1:46.611
09 N. Heidfeld BMW 1:45.964*
10 K. Nakajima Williams 1:47.547
11 J. Trulli Toyota 1:45.038
12 J. Button Honda 1:45.133
13 M. Webber Red Bull 1:45.212
14 D. Coulthard Red Bull 1:45.298
15 F. Alonso Renault no time
16 N. Piquet jr. Renault 1:46.037
17 S. Bourdais Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:46.389
18 R. Barrichello Honda 1:46.583
19 A. Sutil Force India F1 1:47.940
20 G. Fisichella Force India F1 no time