SEPANG, Malaysia, March 23, 2008 (AFP) - Robert Kubica, the first Pole to race in Formula One, hailed his 'brilliant' BMW team after grabbing the best result of his young career when he finished second in Sunday's Malaysian Grand Prix.

The 23-year-old from Krakow steered through the chaos of the opening lap and avoided trouble to claim his first podium finish since the 2006 Italian Grand Prix.

His BMW team rose to second in the constructors championship behind McLaren Mercedes-Benz and ahead of Ferrari as they continued their highly promising start to the season.

"It's a fantastic day for the team, for Petronas our sponsors and for me," he said. "It is our second consecutive podium and at last I have managed to get another one myself.

"I really want to thank everybody in the team who has worked so hard for the last two months. We have really improved the car.

"I had a fight at the start, but I overtook Nick (Heidfeld) and Jarno (Trulli) and from then on I could drive at my own pace.

"The Ferraris were too quick today, but I was able to pull away from the cars that were following me. I then eased off. I didn't feel too well so I wanted to make sure of the finish."

Kubica led the race for eight laps and Heidfeld, his team-mate who finished sixth, clocked the fastest lap.