Hector Barbera overturned 250cc World Championship leader Marco Simoncelli's provisional pole time to deny the Gilera rider a home pole position at Misano.
Spaniard Barbera had been 0.353secs ahead of a still-to-improve Simoncelli by the time the chequered flag was waved, but a determined last lap from the Italian saw him fall just 0.077secs short of regaining the top spot.
Aleix Espargaro gained his first front row start of the year with third position, 0.766secs from Barbera, while Yuki Takahashi put his JiR Honda into fourth.
Mika Kallio, Simoncelli's nearest championship rival, will start from a worrying tenth position, five places behind factory KTM team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama. Kallio is using a new chassis this weekend.
Final qualifying - Misano:
1. Barbera (Aprilia) 1min 38.087secs
2. Simoncelli (Gilera) +0.077secs
3. Espargaro (Aprilia) +0.766secs
4. Takahashi (Honda) +0.775secs
5. Aoyama (KTM) +0.822secs
6. Luthi (Aprilia) +0.914secs
7. Simon (KTM) +0.962secs
8. Faubel (Aprilia) +1.011secs
9. Pasini (Aprilia) +1.083secs
10. Kallio (KTM) +1.118secs
17. Laverty (Aprilia) +2.270secs
