Four of the six fastest drivers in BRM Qualifying had taken pole position in Liuzhou before and two hundredths of a second separated the top three in a thrilling session as Ahmed Al-Hameli took pole ahead of Philippe Chiappe.

It meant that Carella was unable to top the times having claimed pole in Liuzhou between 2012-14 as the Team Abu Dhabi driver clocked 46.06 seconds.

Thani Al-Qamzi was plagued by engine issues in yesterday morning’s free practice session and the Carella’s team-mate was eventually eliminated in the second of three qualifying sessions, meaning he will start today’s race from eighth position.

That was one of the closest pole position qualifying sessions for a long time and it puts Alex in a strong position for the start of the race on Monday,” said Salem Al-Romaithi, assistant general manager of the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club (ADIMSC).

“Rashed Al-Qamzi again showed his consistency and another podium finish enabled him to extend his lead in the F4-S Championship.”