2013 Belgian Grand Prix Qualifying

0 min: Maldonado heads the line of queuing cars out onto the circuit.

0 min: The Marussia pair join the pack of drivers heading out early on.

Rosberg is holding a watching brief as he looks on from the garage.

Both Williams and both Toro Rosso drivers are ready to head out as soon as the green light shines.

Intermediates look to be the tyre of choice for these conditions, with the rain not particularly heavy at the moment.

A queue already forming at the end of the pitlane with drivers desperate to get a time on the board first.

Teams look very keen to get out there and bank a time in case the weather gets worse.

It is important to bear in mind that this shower is not that big and the rain may stop in approximately 15 minutes' time.

Rain continues to fall at a steady pace and the circuit has moved from damp to a wet condition.

Tyres

Tyres are once again in the headlines, but the discovery of debris from Raikkonen's Lotus as the cause of yesterday's punctures, followed by a session without issues has helped calm the concern.

Punctures blamed on Raikkonen debris

Meanwhile, it can always rain at Spa and today's soaking has been well timed for this grid decider. That means the intermediates and full wets are ready for action in the garages, with teams needing to react quickly as track conditions evolve.

There's a substantial pace advantage in the medium compound dry tyres, meaning the fight for leading times would take place on the softer rubber if dry conditions ever return.

Okay, the rain has started in earnest and this changes everything. The circuit is quickly becoming damp and the session has just become a lottery.

Here's how the qualifying battle stands after the summer break: Qualifying head-to-head Vettel 10 - 0 Webber Alonso 7 - 3 Massa Button 6 - 4 Perez Raikkonen 8 - 2 Grosjean Rosberg 3 - 7 Hamilton Hulkenberg 10 - 0 Gutierrez Di Resta 6 - 4 Sutil Maldonado 4 - 6 Bottas Vergne 3 - 7 Ricciardo Pic 7 - 3 Van der Garde Bianchi 9 - 1 Chilton

It has remained dry during the break between sessions, but there could be an imminent change in conditions.

There is a band of rain just a few miles to the south of Spa and heading towards the circuit. Rain is expected to arrive just when the session begins.

There is a light south-easterly breeze and air temperature is up to today's maximum of 22 degrees Celsius.

Vettel

Hello everyone and welcome back to AUTOSPORT Live for continuing coverage and rolling updates from round 11 of this year's FIA Formula 1 world championship - the Belgian Grand Prix from the magnificent Spa-Francorchamps circuit.

Sebastian Vettel kept his firm grip on the rest of the field this morning by topping final practice with a late run on medium tyres. He edged out Ferrari's Fernando Alonso with a lap of 1m48.327s, with the Spaniard just one-tenth down on the flying Red Bull driver. Mark Webber ended the hour third, Jean-Eric Vergne a positive fourth for Toro Rosso, Felipe Massa fifth and Jenson Button rounding out the top six.

Vettel stays on top in final practice

We had 16 cars covered by one second in the final session, so there are high hopes for a tense and exciting qualifying battle this afternoon if the weather remains dry - which is unlikely. Rain will only add drama and the grid could be jumbled as a result.