Lewis Hamilton fears his second place on the United States GP starting grid could be more of a hindrance than a help.
The McLaren driver came the closest to taking the fight to Sebastian Vettel in Saturday's qualifying at the Circuit of the Americas.
One of the last to cross the line, Hamilton brought his MP4-27 across the line with a 1:35.766, which put him just 0.109s down on Vettel's pole position time.
However, starting from the front row but not only pole could prove costly as it is the dirtier and much more slippery side of the grid.
"I'm not really concerned about the first corner, I'm more concerned about being on the dirty side of grid," said the Brit.
"I did a launch there earlier and it was quite slippery. My aim is to get a good getaway."
And although the McLaren driver is keen to stay out of the title race, he insists he will race Vettel for the victory but will make sure he keeps it clean.
"I don't want to get in the way of Sebastian's race but I do want to win," Hamilton said. "I will try my best to get through the first turn cleanly."
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