Top two face off in Brazil

World championship rivals Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso went head to head in the final practice session for the Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos today.

McLaren driver Raikkonen must hope for a miracle if he is to claim the title, with Alonso needing only to finish on the podium in Brazil to seal the championship with two races to spare.

If he is to lose the title battle, Raikkonen is determined to go down fighting with a victory this weekend and he set the pace in final practice.

The Finn’s best lap of one minute 11.929 seconds was 0.181secs quicker than Alonso in second, although the times today failed to improve on yesterday’s standard.

Jenson Button’s hopes of being best of the rest behind the Renaults and McLarens were backed up with a strong showing this morning.

The BAR-Honda driver, who is benefiting from a revised car this weekend, was third-quickest, within a quarter of a second of Alonso’s pace.

Giancarlo Fisichella was fourth in the second Renault, dropping McLaren number two Juan Pablo Montoya to fifth.

Rubens Barrichello, in his home city of Sao Paulo, offered his local fans hope of a competitive showing with sixth for Ferrari, just ahead of team-mate Michael Schumacher. David Coulthard was 12th for Red Bull.

World champion elect Alonso got the better of Raikkonen in this morning’s first practice.

His lap of 1min 12.738secs put him comfortably clear of McLaren rival Raikkonen, who was 0.350secs adrift in fourth place. Fisichella was second quickest, with Montoya third, despite a late spin for the Colombian.