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Mark Webber cruises through the street circuit in Monte Carlo. AP Photo/Antonio Calanni

Denied: Schumacher records fastest time at Monaco but Webber starts in pole

The German will start from fifth on the grid after he was penalised for a crash a fortnight ago.

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER TOPPED qualifying but will not start in pole position due to his grid penalty in Spain.

The Mercedes driver snuck past Webber with one of the final laps of the third qualifying session on Saturday, stopping the clock at one minute and 14.301 seconds.

However, the seven-time world champion will not start on pole position in Sunday’s Formula One GP at the Monte Carlo street circuit because of the five-place grid penalty he received after crashing into Bruno Senna at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this month.

Instead Webber, who was 0.080 seconds slower than Schumacher, will take pole position with Nico Rosberg of Mercedes set to also start on the front row.

McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton will start in third position alongside Romain Grosjean of Lotus, while Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and Schumacher will start on the third row.

Felipe Massa (Ferrari), Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus), Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) and Nico Hulkenberg (Force India) will complete the front 10 spots of the grid for Sunday’s race.

Long wait

Webber moved into pole position as the chequered flag signalled the end of the final qualifying session with the first time under 1:14.400.

Nonetheless, the Australian had to wait for most of the other top 10 drivers to complete their final laps before he could celebrate top spot.

McClaren’s Jenson Button of McLaren had a tough time in Saturday’s qualifying, missing out on the top 10 for the second GP in a row. He will start in 12th position.

It was also a bad day for Williams’ Pastor Maldonado, who had the ninth-fastest time of the day.

The winner of the Spanish GP clipped Sergio Perez of Sauber in the final practice session on Saturday and was given a 10-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race. He will now start 19th.

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