2 F Massa (Ferrari) 1:11.435

3 G Fisichella (Renault) 1:12.135

4 R Barrichello (Honda) 1:12.109

5 F Alonso (Renault) 1:12.449

6 J Villeneuve (BMW Sauber) 1:12.479

7 J Button (Honda) 1:12.523

8 R Schumacher (Toyota) 1:12.795

9 K Raikkonen (McLaren) 1:13.174

10 N Heidfeld (BMW Sauber) 1:15.280

Latest updates (all times BST):

1900: Michael Schumacher stamps his authority on qualifying with a blistering time of 1:10.832. Again he is the only driver to break 1:10 barrier and leads a Ferrari one-two as he grabs pole ahead of team-mate Felipe Massa. Giancarlo Fisichella is the fastest Renault in third, while lap-record holder Ruben Barrichello takes fourth.

1858: Fernando Alonso is the first to set a quick time with 1:12.449. But it is all over for Nick Heidfeld who, after struggling with his BMW Sauber, pulls off onto the grass.

1852: Lap-record holder Barrichello leapfrogs Schumacher with a time of 1:13.807. The Brazilian looks in top form as he chases points that have eluded him in the last two races. But Schumacher is quick to reply returning to provisional pole.

1850: The top-10 shoot-out gathers pace as the clock ticks down and the drivers begin their hot-laps. Michael Schumacher is leading the timesheets with 1:13.916.

1844: It's a slow start to the final session with Ralf Schumacher topping the times on 1:14.291 as drivers use the first few laps to burn off fuel before making their bid for pole-position glory.

1840: The final 20-minute session is under way with the remaining 10 drivers fighting it out for pole position.

1835: The second 15-minute session is over Juan Pablo Montoya, Mark Webber, Scott Speed, Christijan Albers, Tiago Monteiro and Christian Klien eliminated and taking positions 11-16 respectively on the grid.

1833: Massa finds himself humbled by Ferrari team-mate Michael Schumacher, who is first to break the 1:10 barrier.

1832: Felipe Massa sets the standard in his Ferrari with a time of 1:11.146

1828: Lap-record holder Rubens Barrichello moves to the top of the timesheet with a blistering pace of 1:11.512

1823: Nick Heidfeld tops the times in the second session with an impressive 1:11.718.

1820: The second 15-minute session is under way with places 11-16 on the grid to be decided. Jacques Villeneuve sets the first time of the session with 1:12.391.

1815: The first 15-minute session is over with David Coulthard, Takuma Sato, Nico Rosberg, Jarno Trulli, Vitantonio Luizzi and Franck Montagny taking positions 17-22 on the grid.

1808: Michael Schumacher is out on the track as he begins his bid to defend last year's controversial win. He soon tops the times as times drop from around the 1:16 mark to the 1:11 mark

1804: Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld are first to post times on a hot day in Indianapolis.

1800: The first period of qualifying is under way with cars going out to start their warm-ups. The track temperature is 52C and rising.

1730: With 30 minutes to go before the start of qualifying, the air temperature is 31C. The weather is sunny with humidity of 46%.

Ferrari's Michael Schumacher notched up the fastest time in Saturday morning practice and will be hoping to continue that form in qualifying.

The German, who trails championship leader Fernando Alonso by 25 points, has four wins and two runner-up finishes in six races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

However, his victory last year was tainted by the fact that only six drivers ran the race after 14 others pulled out just moments before the start because Michelin could not guarantee the safety of its tyres.

Meanwhile, world champion Alonso is chasing his fifth straight win this weekend after victories in Canada, Britain, Monaco and Spain.

Schumacher's former team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, holds the lap record on the 2.6-mile circuit with one minute 10.399 seconds set in 2004.