McLaren's [Images] title challenger Kimi Raikkonen [Images] took pole position for Sunday's first Turkish Grand Prix [Images] and swept Renault's [Images] championship leader Fernando Alonso [Images] off the front row.

India's [Images] Narain Karthikeyan [Images] will start 19th on the grid on Sunday after he failed to set time.

The Finn lapped the Istanbul circuit in one minute 26.797 seconds on Saturday to pip Renault's Italian Giancarlo Fisichella [Images] by 0.242 of a second.

Alonso, who has won six races this season and leads Raikkonen by 26 points with six rounds left, was third and starts alongside the Finn's Colombian team mate Juan Pablo Montoya [Images].

Toyota's [Images] Jarno Trulli [Images] and Williams' Nick Heidfeld [Images] filled the third row.

Ferrari's [Images] seven-times world champion Michael Schumacher [Images] had a miserable afternoon, spinning off on his timed lap and failing to set a time.

BAR's Jenson Button [Images] qualified 13th after running wide at turn eight while inside Fisichella's time.

Button's Japanese team mate Takuma Sato [Images] made a similar mistake but compounded his error by dawdling on his slowing-down lap and being overtaken by the Williams of Australian Mark Webber [Images].

Standings:

1.  Kimi Raikkonen (Finland)         McLaren   1:26.797
  2.  Giancarlo Fisichella (Italy [Images])     Renault   1:27.039
  3.  Fernando Alonso (Spain)          Renault   1:27.050
  4.  Juan Pablo Montoya (Colombia)    McLaren   1:27.352
  5.  Jarno Trulli (Italy)             Toyota    1:27.501
  6.  Nick Heidfeld (Germany [Images])          Williams  1:27.929
  7.  Mark Webber (Australia [Images])          Williams  1:27.944
  8.  Felipe Massa [Images] (Brazil [Images])            Sauber    1:28.419
  9.  Ralf Schumacher (Germany)        Toyota    1:28.594
10.  Christian Klien (Austria)        Red Bull  1:28.963
11.  Rubens Barrichello [Images] (Brazil)      Ferrari   1:29.369
12.  David Coulthard [Images] (Britain)        Red Bull  1:29.764
13.  Jenson Button (Britain)          BAR       1:30.063
14.  Takuma Sato (Japan [Images])              BAR       1:30.175
15.  Tiago Monteiro (Portugal)        Jordan    1:30.710
16.  Christijan Albers (Netherlands)  Minardi   1:32.186
17.  Robert Doornbos (Netherlands)    Minardi          
18.  Jacques Villeneuve (Canada [Images])      Sauber           
19.  Narain Karthikeyan (India)       Jordan           
20.  Michael Schumacher (Germany)     Ferrari          

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