2012 Malaysian Grand Prix The Malaysian Grand Prix

Lap 3: Grosjean is another man to drop way down the order. He is 18th, as di Resta pits the Force India.

Lap 3: Replays show a good start for Hamilton this time, holding off the challenge of Button into the first corner.

Lap 3: Di Resta is 11th with Hulkenberg 12th, Vergne 13th, Kovalainen 14th and Schumacher has dropped all the way to 15th position.

Lap 2: Behind the top six, Maldonado is seventh with Raikkonen up to eighth, Kobayashi ninth and Massa 10th.

Lap 2: Rain is still falling, but intermediates look just about capable of keeping the cars on track for the moment at least.

Lap 2: Perez dives into the pits and Sauber looks to be gambling on a change to full wets.

Lap 2: Hamilton leads them back towards the pits from Button and the Red Bull pair.

Lap 1: Vettel is up to fourth in his Red Bull ahead of a fast-starting Alonso in his Ferrari.

Lap 1: Rain is falling heavily around the back of the circuit as Schumacher spins in Turn 4.

Lap 1: Bruno Senna has also spun and is recovering at Turn 7.

Lap 1: Heading into the middle of the first lap it is Hamilton from Button and Webber.

Lap 1: Spray coming up aplenty from the tyres ... and Schumacher has spun at Turn 4!

Lap 1: Hamilton gets a good start this time and takes the inside for Turn 1 ahead of Button, with Grosjean up to an amazing third.

Lap 1: The five red lights go out and we are racing in Malaysia!

The McLarens hit their grid slots and the field is forming up nicely behind them. We await the lights ...

He rounds Turn 15 and is on his way to the grid.

Hamilton leads the pack down the penultimate sraight and is heading for the final corner.

De la Rosa has been pushed into the pitlane by the HRT mechanics.

Intermediates will not last long in these conditions, so expect an early rush of pitstops if the rain doesn't return.

Meantime, Hamilton takes them through Turn 4 and round to the middle sector of the circuit.

De la Rosa has failed to get away from the grid.

The formation lap begins at Sepang and Hamilton leads the field away.

Intermediates are the choice of the field as the tyre blankets come off.

The engines fire with a minute to the formation lap.

Michael Schumacher is alive to everything around him. He's looking at the sky, at the mechanics to see what they are doing. He's ready for this.

However, intermediates will degrade rapidly if the track quickly dries meaning teams would like to gamble on slicks if at all possible.

Intermediates look like a wise choice for the conditions at the moment, with the rain not at deluge levels but the track is certainly damp.

Rosberg is told on the team radio that this light rain is set to continue for a few more minutes and that if the race starts as scheduled, then intermediates is the way to go.

There are five minutes to go until the start of the formation lap at Sepang.

A final choice of tyres needs to be bolted on to the cars three minutes before the formation lap.

Very tricky conditions for the teams to decide on tyre choice, with the track not yet fully wet from the fringes of this passing storm.

The radar shows that this light rain is likely to continue for a few more minutes, but it doesn't look like a deluge.

Only one DRS zone available here, with the rear wing opening down the long pit straight. However the system will be disabled in heavy rain.

Motor racing enthusiasts 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.

• How many drivers do you think will finish the race this afternoon?

• Can Felipe Massa put to bed a poor start to the season and bring his Ferrari home in the points?

• Who do you think will win the Malaysian Grand Prix?

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.

Conditions were fine and dry all day ... until five minutes ago. A shower has moved in and the circuit is becoming wet with just 10 minutes to go.

This shower is expected to last around 15 minutes so there is a good chance we will get a full race in today.

Air temperature peaked at 31 Celsius earlier this afternoon, but it is beginning to dip slightly in this storm.

A change in climatic conditions has now been declared by race control.

Here's how the grid will line up this afternoon: Pos Driver Team 1. Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 2. Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes 3. Michael Schumacher Mercedes 4. Mark Webber Red Bull-Renault 5. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull-Renault 6. Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault 7. Nico Rosberg Mercedes 8. Fernando Alonso Ferrari 9. Sergio Perez Sauber-Ferrari 10. Kimi Raikkonen Lotus-Renault * 11. Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault 12. Felipe Massa Ferrari 13. Bruno Senna Williams-Renault 14. Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes 15. Daniel Ricciardo Toro Rosso-Ferrari 16. Nico Hulkenberg Force India-Mercedes 17. Kamui Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari 18. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso-Ferrari 19. Vitaly Petrov Caterham-Renault 20. Timo Glock Marussia-Cosworth 21. Charles Pic Marussia-Cosworth 22. Pedro de la Rosa HRT-Cosworth 23. Narain Karthikeyan HRT-Cosworth 24. Heikki Kovalainen Caterham-Renault ** * Five-place grid penalty for gearbox change ** Five-place grid penalty for overtaking under safety car

The rain is beginning to intensify as the Malaysian national anthem is played.

Large drops of rain have just started falling on the grid as threatening clouds continue to move in overhead.

Lewis Hamilton leads an all-McLaren front row of the grid, with Michael Schumacher proving Mercedes' pace in third and Mark Webber fourth. Sebastian Vettel lines up fifth and he was the only driver in the top 10 to opt for the hard compound Pirelli tyre towards the end of Q3.

Hamilton beats Button to Malaysian GP pole