2011 Italian Grand Prix The Italian Grand Prix

The pitlane is now open, allowing drivers to make their checking and reconnaissance laps to the grid.

Vettel rolls out of the Red Bull garage and takes his car round to check the basic functions.

Kovalainen guides his Lotus T128 onto the racetrack, as he heads towards the grid.

Here's a reminder of the standings ahead of the final European race of the year. World Championship standings, round 12: Drivers: Constructors: 1. Vettel 259 1. Red Bull-Renault 426 2. Webber 167 2. McLaren-Mercedes 295 3. Alonso 157 3. Ferrari 231 4. Button 149 4. Mercedes 88 5. Hamilton 146 5. Renault 68 6. Massa 74 6. Sauber-Ferrari 35

Fernando Alonso is carrying the tifosi's hopes for a strong result today. He heads out to check the condition of his car.

Both Ferrari drivers take the opportunity to pass through the pitlane before making a practice start and heading back around to the grid.

There is heavy traffic at the end of the pitlane as the drivers wait to test a launch and configure the clutch system ahead of a vital start

Local media had been forecasting some scattered showers across northern Italy today, but thankfully conditions are dry, warm and mainly sunny once again.

The sunshine is a little more hazy than the last couple of days, but we expect a dry race with fine weather and a light easterly breeze. Air temperature will peak at around 28 degrees, translating into a maximum track temperature approaching 40 Celsius once again.

The Ferrari pair opt for yet another diversion through the pitlane and emerge via the practice start box.

Senna heads out of the pits in his Renault to take up 10th place on the grid.

Vettel arrives on the grid and is pushed towards pole position by the Red Bull mechanics.

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

Button has taken up his third place grid slot and steps out of the McLaren for his usual pre-race preparations.

Michael Schumacher is now on his lap to the grid. He starts on the outside of row four today.

The pitlane is now closed. Any driver not on the grid by now, will have to take the start from the pit exit, once the field has gone.

A packed crowd of loyal tifosi rise in unison for the Italian national anthem, as it is played out over Monza's public address system.

Plenty of intrigue on the grid, with drivers opting for different gear ratios and downforce levels to take into the race today.

Tifosi

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• Who will get the jump at the lights - Vettel or Hamilton?

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Vettel's gearing choice rapidly pulls the Red Bull up to top speed, but the RB7 is hitting the limiter on the final part of the straight.

McLaren is hoping to use the two DRS zones to its advantage, but Hamilton and Button will need to remain close to Vettel in the early stages

Michael Schumacher looks extremely relaxed as he shares a joke with Luca Badoer while getting ready to do battle this afternoon.

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For the first time, DRS will be detected at both the Lesmos and Parabolica, opening the wing of the chasing car on the subsequent straight.

Two stops is the expected strategy, with a visit to the pits proving costly here due to the high speeds of the pack blasting past.

There are five minutes to go until the formation lap begins at Monza.

Mark Webber receives a final good luck message and some words of advice from Dr. Helmut Marko. The Australian starts from fifth.

Ambient temperature is up to 29 Celsius, with the track sizzling nicely at 41 degrees with just a few minutes to go.

Webber puts on his gloves and composes himself, while team-mate Vettel closes his eyes to focus on the start.

Felipe Massa receives some last-minute instructions from his race engineer Rob Smedley. Tension everywhere on the grid this afternoon.

The engines fire with seconds before the formation lap.

The formation lap begins at Monza. Vettel leads the field of 24 away from the dummy grid.

All 24 cars leave the grid as Vettel exits the first chicane and blasts through the Curva Grande.

Out of Roggia and the pack sweeps through the two Lesmo right-handers and begin the run to Ascari.

Out of the Ascari bends and Vettel begins to slow the pack down as he weaves his way towards Parabolica.

Air horns blast all around the course as Vettel turns for home and brings the field into line behind him.

The drivers peel off into their grid positions at the last moment. The front few rows are in position.

The grid is set and we are ready for 53 laps of combat this afternoon. We await the lights ...

Lap 1: The five red lights go out and we are racing at Monza!