2011 European Grand Prix The European Grand Prix

The gap between cars is detected approaching Turn 8 at the end of the first sector, before the cars head over the bridge.

The experiment with double DRS zones continues here, with activation possible down both the long back straights.

Tyres

Strategy has proven tricky to predict in advance of the start this year, with teams forced to change plans rapidly throughout the race in response to circumstances and their rivals pitstops.

Two stops looks like a good baseline plan this afternoon, with outfits keen to minimise the time spent on the slower, medium compound tyre - perhaps using it for a run to the flag when track conditions are at their best.

The soft compound is tried and tested, but may not last quite as long as the drivers would like with today's very high track temperatures, meaning three stops is even a possible strategy, which comes with the usual risk of being stuck back down the pack behind slower cars.

A lack of safety car intervention this season was resolved with plentiful deployments in Monaco and Canada and will also be a concern for teams here. The sizable run-off areas mean a lot of incidents can be handled under local yellows, but if the big Mercedes does come out at a critical time it could lead to a tricky call on whether to dash into the pits.

They remain standing as the Spanish national anthem 'Marcha Real' follows its European counterpart. The name Spain (España in Spanish) comes from the Latin name Hispania ...

The crowd rises for the European anthem - 'Ode to joy' - as it rings out around the Juan Carlos I marina in Valencia.

The pitlane is now closed. Any driver not out of the pits by now, will be required to start from the end of the lane once the race has begun

Fairly relaxed atmosphere on the wide pit straight here, with no chance of rain this afternoon under cloudless skies.

Valencia

Motor racing fans love to debate and discuss the action on track, and the live forum at the bottom of the screen is your chance to let everyone know your thoughts on events as they unfold at the circuit.

• Do you think the safety car will make an appearance this afternoon?

• Can Lewis Hamilton end his difficult run and keep it clean this afternoon?

• Will Vettel grab another win, or can one of the other leading contenders increase the pressure on him?

Tell the world what you think.

Click the SHOW LIVE FORUM link in the red bar at the bottom of your browser window if you'd like to join the debate.

Final cars now taking up position on the grid with 20 minutes to the start of the formation lap.

Here is the grid line-up for today's race: Pos Driver Team 1. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 2. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 3. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 4. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 5. Felipe Massa Ferrari 6. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 8. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 9. Nick Heidfeld Renault 10. Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes 11. Vitaly Petrov Renault 12. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 13. Rubens Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 14. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 15. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Cosworth 16. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 17. Sebastien Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari 18. Jaime Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari 19. Heikki Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 20. Jarno Trulli Lotus-Renault 21. Timo Glock Virgin-Cosworth 22. Tonio Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 23. Jerome D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth 24. Narain Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth

Massa makes his final run down the pitlane and heads around to take up fifth on the grid.

Vettel has pulled up on the start-finish straight. He is pushed towards pole position by several Red Bull mechanics.

Weather conditions are once again dry, very warm and there is wall-to-wall sunshine over Valencia.

Temperatures are climbing ever-higher and we expect a maximum ambient of 29 Celsius, while track temperature should peak at around 48 degrees during the race, as a light breeze blows in from the Mediterranean Sea.

Kamui Kobayashi joins the racetrack and will be looking to score more points from 14th place on the grid.

Both Ferrari drivers have come back down the lane and stopped at the end to practice a start. They go onto a second tour.

Massa is also on his checking lap as he heads towards the grid. The Brazilian starts from fifth on the grid today.

Here's a reminder of the standings after seven rounds: World Championship standings, round 7: Drivers: Constructors: 1. Sebastian Vettel 161 1. Red Bull-Renault 255 2. Jenson Button 101 2. McLaren-Mercedes 186 3. Mark Webber 94 3. Ferrari 101 4. Lewis Hamilton 85 4. Renault 60 5. Fernando Alonso 69 5. Mercedes 52 6. Felipe Massa 32 6. Sauber-Ferrari 27

Alonso leaves the Ferrari garage and heads out to check over the functions of his car, on what is an important day in front of his home fans.

The pitlane is now open for the drivers to make their reconnaissance laps to the grid.

Vettel

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to AUTOSPORT Live for blow-by-blow coverage of round eight in this year's Formula 1 world championship - the European Grand Prix from Valencia, Spain.

Sebastian Vettel starts from pole position and will be looking to consolidate his healthy championship lead, but his team-mate Mark Webber is alongside him on the front row of the grid, with Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso ready to attack from row two. All three of them will be aiming to increase the pressure on Vettel, after Jenson Button demonstrated what was possible in Canada a fortnight ago.

Felipe Massa and Jenson Button are next up on the third row, with the Mercedes pair just behind them. Friday's long runs showed Rosberg and particularly Schumacher to be well over a second down on the leading full-tank pace, so the chances are that the two silver machines will drop some way back from the performance level shown in Monaco and Montreal, but let's wait and see.

The Renault and Force India drivers have a good shot at gaining some points today, while Kamui Kobayashi starts from 13th and has been a potential points-scorer all year, so look for him to play the tyre strategy cleverly, or possibly take advantage of a safety car situation.

Down the field, Lotus has the measure of Virgin and HRT quite comfortably, and with Toro Rosso's drivers struggling this weekend, it will be interesting to see how long Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli can hang on to the STR5s in the early stages.

So there are several stories throughout the field to look out for this afternoon. It should be a cracking race.