The European Grand Prix Formula 1

Previously on Formula 1... Fabulous stuff!

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 52 seconds

A great start to the season. When Spain was booming, so was its

creativity. A city of arts and science. This weekend welcomes a

sport that excels at both. The art of racing, sound and speed. But the

fastest have their eyes on something slightly less eye-

catching - consistency. Jensen Button.

Fernando Alonso. Nico Rosberg.

Sebastian Vettel. Pastor Maldonado.

Mark Webber. And Lewis Hamilton. They have all

made us stop and stare at some stage. But who from now until the

end of the year can stand out from the crowd? And if an architect was

asked to design the perfect formula One season perhaps this year it is

exactly what the would come up with. Traditionally this is not a race

that has blown our socks off. But after qualifying yesterday, today

it is set up beautifully. I will try not to give too much away but

it was an unbelievable qualifying session. A lot of drivers you would

expect to see at the front are not at the front. There will be a lot

of passing in his race I would expect. And the reason for

qualifying shaping up Blunkett did was how close it was on the track

yesterday. How concerned will the guys at the front be that they have

not yet built a gap over their rivals? It is a leap in the last

couple of years that we have got used to people marching away with

the Championship. But other championships in between, there has

always been a battle. What is unique this season is that so many

of those guys, if you go down to Nico Rosberg, he is just one win

away from leaving the Championship. I am a loving it. It is just so

close. It was just a thousands of a second that cost Fernando Alonso

yesterday. The race will start on the hour. This is the place to

# Don't you worry, it's going to be The moral of the story, if you come

here on a stack do expect to be in trouble in the BBC cameras are

present! Few people realise just how close the beach is to the

action. It is unique in Formula 1. These were the celebrations in

Madrid as the world champions beat France. The Spanish football fans

well used to sell Britain. Jaime Alguersuari joined in. I know

you're a football fan. I could not watched all of the match but I knew

the score. I knew exactly what was going on. Well you looked quite

good, but not good enough to beat England in the semi-finals! We have

seen the passionate and everything that surrounds that vibrancy of the

Spanish people. It is not just confined to football. What has

Fernando Alonso brought to Formula 1? I think Spain does relate a lot

to motorbikes. MotoGP and so on. And there was a big turnaround in

Spain when he got his first title, a culture around motorsport. And

then it started to grow, a big passion for motor sport after what

happened with him. You are up the test and development driver for

Pirelli so ideally placed to get yourself back into Formula 1. Are

you frustrated at not actually being out on the race track? Well

it has been great to develop these tyres and I'm really enjoying

myself, I always do in a Formula 1 car. I'm looking forward to

competing again, I miss this feeling of the red lights, the

flags, maybe the podium! All the female fans back home will be

disappointed that you have covered up your lovely eyes! If we look at

the calendar for this year this is our second trip to Spain. It is

looking like they will alternate the races between Barcelona and

Valencia. Do you understand that? Our economic situation is not the

best. For me it is great to race in Spain twice. But we need to be

realistic. I think one race is enough for us, hopefully Barcelona

because I come from there. But it is great, all the fans come here.

But for sure we cannot hold two races. It is too much for us and

our economic situation at the moment. Well you had better go

because you have to go up to the commentary box. And he will be

commentating actually on 5 Live. Last year he really struggled in

qualifying and then finished in the points. Here is what happened in

qualifying and here is a starts out of position.

Mark Webber was next Saturday started badly with a brake problem

in free practice and got worse in qualifying when he was unable to

escape the first drop zone. He starts in 19th position. In the

second part of qualifying, it was the most competitive ever seen.

Fernando Alonso just missed out on the cut making the first time since

Australia that he has missed out on the top 10. Jensen Button it was

faster than Lewis Hamilton in the second part of qualifying but could

not repeat that performance on his final set of tyres and is in 9th

position. Hamilton got a better- than-expected second place. But

Sebastian Vettel got a hat-trick in Valencia with an outstanding lap

faster than anyone else by three- tenths of a second. So the front

row is a repeat of Canada and Bahrain. Pastor Maldonado his third

ball Williams. Nico Rosberg felt he was hindered by Hamilton but

they're both in the top 10 for Force India. Alonso and Schumacher

up are in the 6th row. Vitali Petrov finds himself next to Mark

Webber. And due to a stomach upset Timo Glock will not be on the grid.

So we send our best wishes to Timo Glock. I imagine Ferrari also felt

pretty sick after qualifying yesterday. We spoke earlier to

Pastor Maldonado. You start in third position. You have already

won a Grand Prix in Spain, can you make it to in a road? I hope so. It

is important to win the podium for us, I will do my best to win.

Strategy will be very important today. I feel very confident with

the car because we're always competitive. Some looking forward

to the race. And a wish the team all the best. All 24 cars finished

the race last year. What is the key to winning it this year? You're on

the clean side of the grid. That is important. There's a huge

difference in terms of the grit between the lines and that will be

important to have a good start. A well tried to maintain my position

against Lewis Hamilton. That is not easy, it will be a tough race for

everybody. These conditions are difficult for at the tyres. It will

be tough for everybody. You have got your own Grandstand here that

is packed with fans, thousands of miles from home. I'm very happy to

see all of them. They are looking for Williams, at looking for me,

and it is a pleasure to race in front of them. For sure all of my

country is looking for a big result. Keep your eyes on Pastor Maldonado

starting on clean side of the grid, a fast starter. He has already

shown that he is a race winner this year. He is making good progress

and I'm certain he will have learnt from the mistakes that he has made.

He could be a dark horse. Well the prancing horses were struggling in

qualifying yesterday. Felipe Massa are just making his way through to

the garage behind us. Do you think they'd made a tactical error

yesterday with not running the softer tyres? If they had used that

they would have made the final part of qualifying. When you have the

18th of the talent and expertise of Ferrari, and they make such

fundamental errors, it is not excusable. They did that previously

and it cost Fernando Alonso the Championship in Abu Dhabi. For me

this is a huge strategic error. I am critical of Ferrari because yet

again they have dropped the baton. It is an unbelievable mistake.

us your thoughts on the qualifying performance of Felipe Massa.

Comparing last year to this year, is the problem for him not getting

it together on Saturday? Well look at those results. This is Ferrari

we are talking about. The greatest name in motor racing. You have to

go to Monaco, which is renowned as being the favourite circuit of

Felipe Massa, that is the only circuit where he is just about

equal to his best position last year. He has a role problem here

and he cannot raise unless he moves up the grid.

He's just having his photograph taken. You're under pressure,

thinking about the race, and someone is taking go photograph!

Ferrari have come out and said that sensual prose is too aggressive at

the moment. I think they want Sergio Perez. If I was running

Ferrari I certainly would think about him. What I would love for

them to do is get a young driver, put their arms around him and

nurture him, bring them forward. We hear that they're talking to

Sebastian Vettel, talking to Hamilton and Mark Webber, for me

that is nonsense. Take a young potential champion and grow with

them. That is the perfect scenario. And what will frustrate Ferrari is

that Lewis Hamilton, and we can see him making his way to his garage,

he starts second. That will frustrate Ferrari because they

think he is the man to watch for the Championship. Well they have to

watch the constructors Championship as well and they're throwing this

away with neither carp in the top 10. Where is the responsibility?

The grid is tight, I give you that. And perhaps Fernando Alonso will

get up into the podium, we do not know. But the qualifying is so

Let's find out how Nico Rosberg feels. The highest scoring driver

for the past five races. Thanks for your time ahead of the

Grand Prix. You will be starting in sixth place. What can you expect to

convert that to? It did not work out in qualifying yesterday, I got

stuck behind Lewis. I could not do my lap properly. Six places

disappointing, but I have a good race car. The strategy will be

interesting today. I think some people will just make one stop.

That will make the race really interesting. A lot is possible.

mentioned being held up by Lewis. You grow up together in the same

karting team. Is it a bit strange when you go to the stewards and you

have to say, he held me up and he says no? How do you deal with that?

It is very, very awkward to be in there with a friend. You are trying

to have them over and he is trying to have you over. It is very

awkward. For me it is very easy to separate the two things, from what

goes on on the track. He messed up my second lap yesterday, but we can

still be laughing today. We wish you luck. Thank you. Good luck to

Nico Rosberg. He has now just climbed into the car behind us. He

is putting serious pressure on his team-mates. Michael qualified in 12

face and the Coe is much further forward. It pressure in this garage.

There is huge pressure on Michael Schumacher. I think the team has

let him down. They admit that. A lot of unusual unforced errors in

terms of the mechanics. Michael himself still lingers on. What

happened with Bruno Senna running into the back of him, there was not

characteristic. Two points on the board is not what he expected to

have after these races. A big opportunity for Mercedes because we

are back to the Big Apple next year. Who better to give us a guided tour

around the new circuit than the current world champion, Sebastian

For 40 years, people have been talking about having an F1 race in

Central Park, Flushing Meadow Park, Wall Street. The problem with those,

besides the bureaucracy, is that you can't see New York when you're

in New York. You can't see the forest for the trees. We are in New

The whole side of the city will be able to hear these cars go by. It

will wake people up to what an F1 car can really do. Sebastian Vettel.

It is amazing to see all of this coming together. It is more than

four years of work. The first time we came here was June, 2008. We

were hoping to have Formula One racing. We are ahead of schedule.

If you look behind you, there's a garage area and we are ahead of

schedule on that. It will be completed in the next four or five

months. It is a street circuit with elevation changes. Maybe that is

comparable to what you see in Monaco. But the high speed makes

this quite unique. It could be the best Formula One track in the world.

This is my first time in New York so I have a good tour guide.

don't know where I'm going! doesn't know where he's going,

apparently. Which is a bit worrying. This is the track. This? We were

speaking to the guys and they were saying the main thing will be the

elevation changes. I've been surprised as well. You will see

after this right hander, it is quite steep uphill. It is a normal

road, which is part of it. Obviously they have to take those

I really wasn't expecting that. we have to... Let's do something

illegal! This one is a massive step forward for all of us, Formula One.

It is great to be part of a time when a race in New York comes in.

That is something very special. I've just been in the car with

Sebastian Vettel and now I'm here with the grandfather of Formula One.

Isn't that Eddie Jordan? I'm not as old as Michael Schumacher, I'm only

41. I was a bit disappointed, I was trying to make Sebastiaan do

something illegal, is that bad? Germans would never do anything

Stick your hand out of the window Can I see your licence,

registration and insurance card? You were been clocked at 100 mph in

the 25 mph zone. We were filming. From the BBC. The any paperwork I

have got is the script for the peace we were filming. -- only

paperwork. I don't have my licence on me because I didn't think it was

necessary. This is not enough for Do I get a phone call? Remarkably,

the man he called was Eddie Jordan. Did you pay the bail? That poor

policemen, he should have thrown the keys away. I would love to have

seen him locked up for life. It was only a joke, David was not driving

naughtily. The cars are leaving the garages, less than half-an-hour

until the race starts. A while longer until we are in New Jersey

for the race. Why is the USA so important to Formula One? It is the

corporate capital of the world. We know about the emergence of the new

countries, Brazil, India, China. But most of these corporations and

the people who understand the marketing worldwide and the effect

that Formula One has are all American and they want to be in New

York. We're going to New Jersey, or are we? This is there any today.

Last night he spoke to Ali Mackenzie and explain that maybe we

are not going to New Jersey. 2013, reports of 23 races, is that

correct? Not at the moment, no. many races? 20. Will we have any

new ones? Not for next year, definitely not. Not New Jersey next

year? No. We will have to see. I need to have another look. What

I've seen up to now, I'm not as sure as they are. If they can get

it completed and confirmed to us it will be done, it could be on the

cards. That is completely unclear! Definitely not happening and

deathly is happening. I'm not sure what to make of that. You were

there, 15 months away from the race, did they seem like they were ready?

Were they talking about maybe having a raised? They think they

are ahead of schedule. The scheduled date they are talking

about is just after Montreal. Just less than 12 months away. It looks

like a lot of work because the road is in trouble in the middle.

have to also remember there was a big doubt about the race in Austin

or India. And a lot of other places. Bahrain included. Bernie always has

a habit of throwing something in it and making sure they get on with it

and employ extra people to make it happen. I feel quite certain he

will not miss the opportunity of having a Grand Prix in New York

just because it is late. He will have it there. We would love to go

to New York, but I'm sure relaxing in the YMCA is all that is on

Jenson Button's mind. He has been out-qualified by his team-mate

every race this season. Today he starts 9th on the grid. Eddie has

been asking just what has gone wrong. Don't have the pace. Too

much understeer in the car. Button is back in the pits, is that over?

Has Heathrow in the towel? don't have very bad qualifying

sessions and understand what is going wrong. Look... He will be

Not a lot to say about that, is there? Lewis has won the race.

Today I was probably two seconds off the pace of the leaders. I've

never been there before, especially in a car that has won a Grand Prix.

I don't understand why we are getting so much locking. It is

everywhere. I don't it if the circuit changed, but I could not

Two points in the last four race is the Jenson. It is not good enough,

what is the problem? His pace, if you look at the first four races,

he was quicker than Lewis. If you look at his place in qualifying, he

is not far off, but because the grid is so tight, if you get caught

down the pack, you can lose around 10 places. It is about getting the

tyres to work properly on that lap. Sometimes he can get it right and

sometimes not. Everybody is concerned about the performance of

Jenson at the moment. How concerned are you? None of us are as

concerned as Jenson. He is very intelligent, he thinks things

through, he had a fantastic track record of understanding the tyres

and the car. When he doesn't understand it himself, he is

inevitably, despite a lot of self- confidence, he is worried.

points in his last four races, it is not good enough for anybody.

It's not. It's not good enough for him or us. He knows that. What he

has to do is reflect on the fact that two weeks ago in Melbourne he

was massively competitive. Button wins in Australia! Fantastic Four

stop none of that skill evaporated. All of that experience is still

there. He is a very focused and committed driver. He's very honest

as well, he's willing to look at himself and be self-critical. I

think last week we were more culpable than him. We did not have

a good enough job in setting the car up. He was damaging his tyres.

That is not Jenson. We know he can do a better job than that. Lewis

Hamilton was masterful today. Lewis, nearly double the points

tally that Jenson has, at what stage does McLaren thing, our best

hope of winning the championship is now with Lewis, let's focus on

that? Not yet. That is not how we run. We have been criticised many

times about this. I think there's a philosophy. The reason Jenson is

here, the reason he joined McLaren, he was with a great team, is in the

belief that he was going to have just as much chance as -- and given

as much opportunity as Lewis. We have to honour that. If you asked

me this going into the last race and Lewis's campaigning for the

championship, we both know that I've got to take a different

approach, but we are a long way OK. Not necessarily happy times in

McLaren, but Jenson does race today. Timo Glock doesn't and this is a

message from his team. Isn't it lovely help well prepared everybody

is in Formula One? They still have their own race suits on! Just in

case he makes a miraculous recovery. They might need those guys for the

pit stop. I'm joking. Let's go for a walk and head out of the grid.

How does it feel, you've driven at McLaren, when you hear the team

principal say it is not good enough for us, it is not good enough for

him, when talking about Jenson's current form? It is honest. JB will

be the first person to acknowledge he is not happy with qualifying

form. He is a winner, he has had great results at McLaren, but his

last few races have been tricky. He has to be careful to avoid this

become systematic. Every time he goes to qualifying, he start

clamming up. When you over analyse what you are about to do, it

becomes more of an issue. Eddie? What is the issue? Well, you would

have to assume the car. This is a quality team. You have to assume

the cars are Tote -- close to each other in terms of technical

preparation. We saw something similar with Lewis last year.

Jenson had the ascendancy so therefore you saw Lewis... This

could be one of the issues about running two world champions in a

team. You have this Markov effect. I'm as confused as everyone. I

think Jenson has a lot of inner soul searching to find. Jenson

wasn't the only man who struggled in qualifying. Mark Webber did the

same. Always a bit quieter for the boys at the back of the grid. Do

you want to have a chapter of my maybe we should. You can be an Mize

Jean-Eric Vergne they're heading off for some refreshment. It was a

bit of a nightmare for you yesterday? It was an unusual day.

That is what happens when you drop the ball big time on Saturday

afternoon, you're exposed. That is what happened to us. We had no DRS

in the first part of qualifying so did not make the cut. You cannot

take back time. Jensen Button spent a lot of time back behind Caterham

in Monaco. It is difficult to overtake here. Yes. And there are

complex corners in 12 and 13 so that makes it difficult to finish

the move. It is not as bad as Monaco, but not far off in terms of

being unbelievably hard to move up. You started at the back in China

and came through to the podium. The same here, it is there more or less

pressure? I think when you are here you're just trying to get your risk

management correct. At the front there's less risk and a bit more

precision involved. Here there is a lot more variability in what we're

trying to achieve. The risk is going to be there because I'm

associated with different types of cars and people for the majority of

the race. So does trying to weigh that up, but not trying to get too

analytical about it. We just have to try to get up as far as we can.

I want to try to take a walk over to Caterham. They have seen a

massive improvement. Here is the man who managed to achieve it.

Heikki Kovalainen, can we have a quick word? The team are starting

to deliver on what they promised earlier in the year. I just spoke

to Mark Webber who has the Challenge of trying to raise you.

You must be happy with the qualifying? Absolutely. My

did not feel like an especially good lap but the car is getting

better and the results are better. If I had a Red Bull a would be in

pole position! But hopefully we will have oh good race today. We

will be aggressive and we will be racing the cars we would not

normally be racing. One or two stocks? I think probably too.

Sauber here. What are you guys hiding? We are just standing

around! Here is a chap we do not normally

see so far done the grid, that Ferrari here. I'm going to dive in

here and have a word with Felipe Massa. Your lap times were good

relative to your team mate. I hope this man kiss me good energy for

the race! -- gives me. We must really tried to recover position.

It is difficult to get a hand on what people are expecting. Do you

have a gut feeling as to what you're going to do in terms of the

stops? I think between 1 and 2. That is interesting. Here is Bernie

Ecclestone. It is not quite as busy here as it was in Monaco.

Poll position is this way. Paul di Resta and, very honest yesterday

that he dropped the ball in that last sector. He feels he could have

been up there with Pastor Maldonado. Nico Hulkenberg, his team-mate, put

in a very strong qualifying. Just looking at where we are on the

track, some of the teams are telling us there is not much

separation between what is faster at the start. In Canada of course

we saw that Sebastian Vettel was into -- able to convert his pole

position into leading at the first corner. It might be more difficult

here. You're both running teams here,

what are you talking about this late on in the Grand Prix? When

England beat Germany! Football the top of the town. Good

luck for your respective races. Christian Warner, how are you

feeling? Well we have got another chance to try to convert the pole

position into a win. Hopefully we can have a good run. But it is

going to be tight and competitive. Sebastian said he did not know if

he could go any faster. Was it as surprise that he not only got the

pole position but by such a margin? Well it was so tight, and you think

put a bit more polish on and it could be enough to do it. But then

he produced one of the best laps of his career and under-age huge

pressure. One set of tyres. Anti was inch perfect in that lap. So

the gap was bigger than anybody expected. He has to do it all again

today but over a lot more laps. Let us take a quick sprint down to

the front. Sebastian's poll position was incredible yesterday.

We're getting a shake of the head. The man very much focused on the

race ahead. I think we have covered all the drivers available right now.

Thank you very much. David will attempt to explain just how

Sebastien pulled out such an incredible lap in qualifying in a

moment. But first we can hear from Jensen Button.

When we spoke yesterday you were a little frustrated. What is the key

to moving forward in this race today? A positive attitude. I'm

sorry I did not have that yesterday. I watched some replaced from last

year and I actually overtook. It is difficult to tell how the car feels

on away to the grid. But there are no issues and from where we are, if

we have the strategy correct and look after the tyres in the correct

manner, we could still have a good race.

Jensen Button will also be hoping he can make use of the di Resta in

this race. -- the DRS. Well the driver in front will

position his carp in the middle of the road and therefore, with a

street circuit it is virtually impossible. It is much quicker on

the top of the road so you go to the side and run the risk of having

an accident. Jensen Button will be hoping to use his DRS to get

through the crowd as well Paul di Resta. How are you feeling?

Reasonable, we had good pace all weekend. We will try to go forward.

Strategy is going to be quite a big one today. How many stops? We are

uncertain about that as well. Good luck today. That seems to be

the message of the day, no one knows quite how many pit-stops they

will have to make. But what we do know is that Sebastian Vettel was

impressive. Just how did he build such a gap? Have a look.

European Grand Prix round eight of the Formula 1 world Championship

and once again the battle for pole position came down to these two men.

Exit on turn at one, positioning in to turn two. Sebastian much more

aggressive on the entry. And look at the shadow under that bridge,

Lewis Hamilton already more than one car lengths behind. Sebastian a

lot more aggressive on the kerb. Turns number six and seven charges

position us. The next big position they have is in the entry into a

turnip No. 8. It is pretty much a nip and tuck.

Both nice and early on the power coming into Dan. But look at how

much Sebastian Vettel has opened the gap in that first sector.

Both tidy on the braking but Hamilton it blocks up and runs a

little bit wide. Sebastian Vettel so much tighter. And he is having a

barrier, giving him vital tenths. The next big decision is where we

break coming into 17. Much of a muchness there. And then the speeds

build into 18, 19. Using all of the 18,000 RPM. Hamilton has gained

back around two car lengths but he locks up into the last corner.

Sebastian runs for the line, an amazing pole position. Third in the

all-time list. Only Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher or up next.

What a lap. But how does he keep the likes of this man behind him?

It is going to be tricky. I think is going to beat two stops. I'm

certain that Sebastian wants to make good the problems he had in

Canada. So would will be a titanic battle. But we cannot rule out

Romain Grosjean was that he could be a dark horse.

There are plenty of ways to get involved with BBC Formula 1.

Including the driver tracker which you can find on the website.

If you have a favourite driver, you couldn't write on board with them

using the red Button or the website. -- could ride on board. Is this

race all about strategy and tyres? I think so, hydration issues and

such. I think it will be a big strategic question. Time to be

guided through race eight of this extraordinary season.

The aim for Sebastian now, to stay cool in the heat and make it a hat-

trick of wins in the Valencia Grand three European Grand Prix in a row,

but Sebastian Vettel is ideally placed to do so. Round eight of the

championship from Valencia, the third largest city in Spain. It has

had its port taken over for a 5th season. Baking in the sunshine,

this is the second visit to Spain in six weeks and it brings the

drivers to a straight track which contains 25 corners over a distance

of 3.3 miles. It is faster than Monaco. It is almost as hard on the

brakes as Montreal. The race has never been won from lower than

third on the grid, but Ferrari are hoping to change that with national

hero Alonso is starting from 11th. This looks to be another Vettel

against Hamilton confrontation. Both are trying to become the first

repeat winners of the season. Or perhaps one of the Lotus drivers

can become when a number eight and keep that Merry Go round of winners

turning one more time. We are hoping for another tantalising race.

A fantastic view over the marina as we look at this track. One of the

cruise ships just coming into day macro, giving some of the

passengers a pretty good view of what is about to happen on the

circuit. Fernando Alonso starting from 11th place. Can Ferrari pull

out something with the strategy? He is second in the points at the

moment so he desperately needs to keep on track with the likes of

Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel. Pastor Maldonado is right up near

the front, starting from third, his second best ever qualifying

position. Williams have had three wins in the European Grand Prix,

but the last time was at the Nurburgring. Fantastic support

today and a lot of fans filling up the grandstands. Jenson Button with

plenty to do. Fourth race outside the top five on the grid. His best

finish it was third place in 2010. McLaren have yet to win on the

streets of Valencia. Lewis has been second three times on this track.

It will be frustrating if he can't find a way past Vettel in the early

stages or perhaps towards the latter parts of the race. He is up

for the fight. Red Bull come up with changes to the car, updates

have helped them today and Sebastian Vettel starting from his

third pole position. We have four Renault powered cars in the top

five and Renault are looking to match Ferrari for six victories in

the European Grand Prix. Mark Webber has a lot more work to do,

coming all the way from 19th position. He will have to fight his

way through in the early stages and see if he can get past cars like

Kovalainen's Caterham. The track temperature is 45 degrees. No

hotter than it been in the past. There's still a big question over

the number of stops we will see throughout the course of the day.

from pole position in the last two the beginning of this year in

Australia. Perez came up to the stomach bug which has afflicted him

all weekend means he can't raise. The grid is beginning to clear,

David. Still a question from the teams... Median start tyres for

Webber. -- medium. Schumacher, Perez and Vergne. Fairly obvious

what Perez hopes to do, the same as Montreal. Interesting from Michael

as well. That is good information. They are saying there harder tyre

on Michael Schumacher's car. Not surprising from Sergio Perez,

because we have seen him go for the one stop and we saw him effective

in Montreal, and he did it here last year as well. Indeed, they

will see if they can make the tyres last. A brand new set of Michael

Schumacher's car. Given the cars in front, they will have at least

three laps by the time they go out. If nothing else, he will be able to

get the advantage of the fresh tyres at the start. Mercedes have

had difficulty. Michael has struggled a little bit to make full

use of that. There is a prime viewing spot for that photographer!

Meanwhile, back with what will be the main attraction this afternoon,

we will have them getting some heat in the tyres on this formation lap.

They will have lost a lot of heat with the blankets removed for the

best part of a minute on the grid. Confirmation of everyone in the top

10, down to 11, Alonso had a choice of whether to start on a soft tyre.

Michael Schumacher is the first man to drop that run and start on the

medium tyres. That will be absolutely crucial information in

the early stages for top if people try to do a one stop, we can expect

that to be about 20 or more. If it is to start, anything from lap 10

forward. Lewis Hamilton is only two points ahead of Alonso and Vettel

close behind. Gary, looking at those tyre choices and particularly

Schumacher's Joyce, it is interesting they have gone for the

harder compound tyre. Yes. But if you do the same thing, or you can

do is the same result. He will try to be out there when the soft tyre

cars are coming into the pits a bit earlier than him. He will get a

clean track. I would be looking at doing the same thing. I'm a bit

surprised that Alonso hasn't done that as well. He has got two of the

new set of the soft tyre and one set of a hard tyre. He could have

used that new set now I'm gone on to the soft ones and do -- done two

short stints at the end of the race with faster tyres. We will have to

see how it unfolds. Chinook and Alonso on different strategies. --

Shunyi Lagat and Alonso. -- Sue knacker. Interesting shot, we saw

the umbrella at the back of the grandstand, being so close to the

team. This was the venue for the America's Cup. The strong wind

blows a round this track. As it heats up during the day, air

temperature currently 27 degrees, track temperature 44, so this will

challenge the engineers controlling the tyres. The drivers within the

cockpit as well. Sitting in the 60 degree cockpit, you will be

suffering from dehydration. Vettel and Hamilton on the front row.

Maldonado stoats on second row with Grosjean. Then Raikkonen and

Rosberg. Kobayashi, Hulkenberg. Button starts in ninth place with

the rest are intent. Alonso it then Schumacher. Massa his 13th, then

Prix in Valencia to get under way. Lights Out come away we go.

Sebastian Vettel trying to get off the line, Hamilton in danger from

Maldonado. Raikkonen get past bruise on, but loses out. --

with Vettel, Hamilton second and then it is Grosjean. Raikkonen has

missed out. The Ferraris, Alonso has made up some ground. Felipe

Massa and Jenson Button were all over each other. They ran very wide.

Hulkenberg is in the Force India coming across the swing bridge. The

Lotus having to go defensive. Rosberg has Massa on the outside of

him. This was a Schumacher the perfect run on Massa. Rosberg has

had a terrible start. He started in six, but he is fighting with

Schumacher, who was 12th on the Mercedes. Alonso is trying to get

past Hulkenberg in the Force India. Trying to gain as many places as

possible. Look at Sebastian Vettel sprinted away from Lewis Hamilton.

Then it is Grosjean and here comes Alonso, getting past Hulkenberg.

Can he sweet round? No, Hulkenberg holds on. A good start from Alonso,

currently in eighth place. He will not want to be running in the dirty

air of that Force India. Trying to use all of his experience to go

past him on the first lap. 190 mph through turned 24. Jenson Button

has dropped down to 13th place. Webber has got past Kovalainen in

the background. Webber has gained a crucial place. Vettel leaves from

Hamilton at the end of the first lap. We have seen this so many

times. Hamilton from Grosjean, and then Kobayashi. Kobayashi has had a

great first lap. He started in seven. Bruno Senna tried to get

down the inside of Perez. He has held on to 14th place. Perez trying

to take that away from him and Senna just did enough. It is

dropping them away from the group ahead, which is Jenson Button and

Mark Webber. Mark Webber trying to join in the fun and games. Bruno

Senna looks as though he might be holding up this group. Senna doing

a lot to hold his position, completely understandable, but it

plays into the hands of Jenson Button. Grosjean is making Hamilton

go defensive. At this early stage, McLaren taking some time to try to

build the energy in their tyres. Could this be that Hamilton has

been told to roll the dice and do the opposite of Canada and preserve

the tyre and see if we can do the One Stop This weekend. The

differential in pace between Vettel in front... Maldonado getting

outside the inside. - down the inside. Great stuff from Maldonado.

It is fair to say that Kimi Raikkonen was mugged! I think

Maldonado was fending him off. Raikkonen was having a go. On the

exit of turn 17, you can drive it - - give the driver some space or run

him wide, and that is what Maldonado did. Raikkonen from

Hulkenberg. Raikkonen lost out at the start. He made an initial could

get away and then lost out, now fighting. We are on board with

Hulkenberg, chasing Kimi Raikkonen. You have got Sebastian Vettel two

second a lap faster than Lewis Hamilton. Four second gap after two

laps. That is astonishing, Warehouse Vettel found his

incredible pace? -- where has. DRS is now enabled. Hamilton definitely

struggling. Or controlling his place, one of the other. Grosjean

is behind and then Kobayashi and then Maldonado and Raikkonen.

Grosjean has got the Diarrar soap and. Will he get close enough on

his lap? Not good to pick up the dust on the inside. Hulkenberg

showing Raikkonen he is there. Paul di Resta locking up a little bit

behind Massa. Jenson Button is still stuck behind Michael. Tyre

temperatures are reaching the critical point. Tyre temperatures

critical. It is such a narrow window. If you go outside the

window and beyond the tired temperature that is comfortable for

that compound of tyre, the drivers begin to struggle. Let's look at

the start and what went on with the Lotuses. We can see Raikkonen gets

a better start than Grosjean. He comes up the inside, Grosjean tried

to defend late. There's almost contact with Maldonado. Grows on

could cut back down the inside of Maldonado. He got a little bit

start with him -- from him. This is the big difficulty as you carry 150

kilos of fuel into the second corner. The last time they drove

these cars, it was with 10 kilos of fuel in qualifying. Hulkenberg

comes off best in his battle with Rosberg. Risking all with his front

wing. On board with Grosjean, watch to the right. Raikkonen appears.

Almost contact with Maldonado. Down the inside. A little bit of contact,

but great stuff. He went through the corner in third gear and had to

short shift down to second. He was trying... Michael Schumacher, a bit

of wheelspin on his start. Understeer is wide on the dust and

has to lift out of it. That allowed Massa to go through. He got touched

before the second corner. Was that with Jenson Button? No. He was

touching Chinook and that point? him so let us presume it was him.

Lewis Hamilton is there. Kobayashi trying to get past Romain Grosjean

but it did not quite come off. He has been told to get a move on.

He was the man who made very impressive progress in Canada. But

this afternoon the word is that he has to push and get past Hamilton.

Sebastian Vettel managing to build for it up front. I think McLaren

then they will have a pit stop in hand. Do you think Hamilton is

struggling for pace? I do not really know why he is

choosing to go for one pit stop. He has to look at the lap times.

It is so much faster at the front with Sebastian Vettel there will

stop there -. Sebastian still putting in those

quick sector of times. Paul di Resta has been told on the radio

that he has to lift and coast of the last part of the entry to the

high-speed corners to try to control rear cover of temperature.

Not sure why Force India would be having difficulty with that.

Felipe Massa is making it quite difficult for Paul di Resta. Why

would the Force India be struggling after all the work they did on

Friday? It is difficult to answer. It could be something to do and

with the way bear running the brake balance. They moved the brakes to

the rear to stave some front Sergio Perez may go for it fewer

stops than the others. Sebastian Vettel has got the last is -- the

fastest lap on laps six. We will watch those Lab times closely. If

they get slower that will be the indication that the tyres are past

their best. And once that happens they absolutely fall off the edge

of a cliff in terms of performance. Felipe Massa going a little bit

wide Vostok -- wide. Sebastian Vettel can now picked and get out

in front of the 11th placed man, Nico Rosberg, providing it is a

clean stock. -- stop. Paul's engineer telling him there

take the line into the corner. He is looking after those tyres. But

Sergio Perez feels he wants to get past that Williams.

Mark Webber there in the back of the group, he has not made any more

progress. He is still behind Daniel the harder of those tyres, trying

for a one-stop strategy this afternoon, taking it nice and

steady. But he is down in 17th place.

Last year every single car that started went on to finish the race.

The lead is it took 9.7 seconds now as Sebastian Vettel leads Lewis

Hamilton. Charles Pic trying to get past

Karthikeyan. And they did actually make contact there.

Timo Glock is of course not taking part in this race because of

illness so there are 23 cars out. A little bit of debris in down

there but hopefully that will not cause any problems. It was the good

first-lap from Fernando Alonso. We are expecting to see some pit stops

coming up I would expect. But the lap times are holding up pretty

well. No sign of drop-off just yet. Fernando Alonso still chasing down

and the Force India. Force India have had good results year in the

past few years in Valencia. I think they wear a little disappointed

with a qualifying yesterday despite having both cars in the top 10.

Paul di Resta up and felt he had the pace to beat in the second row.

But overall Force India has made improvements as the season has

progressed. Sebastian Vettel goes through. And there is Lewis

Hamilton it at last with Romain Grosjean. Romain Grosjean are

trying to go round the outside of Lewis Hamilton and he has done it!

At Great moved by it Romain Grosjean. He made his debut 2009.

His early career in Formula 1 was not good. That this year he has

been amazing. He made sure that enough of his car

was alongside Lewis Hamilton that he had no choice but to give him

the position. Still watching Fernando Alonso as he chases down

Nico Hulkenberg. Hamilton goes to squeeze in but

there's too much of the Lotus already alongside him. That was

absolutely crucial. Lewis Hamilton has gone defensive. That was buried

there from Lewis Hamilton, he gave him the room. -- very fair.

The harder of the tyres going on, the medium tyres. Sergio Perez has

been into the pits and we expected him to dill one of his long, a

single run stops. But he has Santa come in early as well. Jensen

Button did start on the softer tyres so he has now used both of

the choices this afternoon. Unlikely that he can go to the end

foul on these. -- now on these. Quite unfairly stop for Jensen

Button but said she Jerez is fresh and surprising? It was surprising,

he was the one person you would have thought would drag it through

to the end. He started on the harder of the sets of tyres. They

both changed to Fredric so what will be interesting to see if they

Also going for the harder compounds. Ferrari consistently fastest on the

pit stops. Both Lotus cars still in the hunt. Pastor Maldonado very

sure of his blogging into turned 12. Kimi Raikkonen could have another

look down into a number 17. It is all going to be about braking. He

thinks better of it. Would you risk jumping down the inside of Pastor

Maldonado? I'm not certain I would try that on him and it looks as if

Kimi Raikkonen has made that same on if he is going to be able to be

released and try to catch the gap leader, 12.5 seconds in the clear.

RADIO: Now we push as hard as we can. And you can see Alonso, very

much pushing, as he tries to close up that gap. It is crucial in the

Championship that he does not see Vettel and Hamilton running away

too far ahead. These guys are so close together in the points at the

moment. You're looking at Raikkonen, again having a little look at

getting past Pastor Maldonado, for fifth place. Side-by-side day go!

He has got a! Lovely move, Kimi Raikkonen.

DAVID COULTHARD: Yes, instead of going down the inside into turn 13,

he goes around the outside of Maldonado. Just going back to

Alonso's engineer, he said, now we push. A new fastest lap has now

been set by Perez, having just come in for a new set of tyres. So,

Perez now going very quickly, and his tyres will be monitored by the

rest of the crews. Down in 18th at the moment, Button. Hamilton is

coming in. Lewis Hamilton, going on to the harder tyres. We will see

where this brings him out on track. Senna goes through, so he comes out

behind him, putting him in 12th place. That was an excellent pit

stop, and McLaren seem to be turning around their fraught pit

stops from earlier in the season. Much faster now. How is this going

to work out for Lewis Hamilton? He is certainly not doing one stop, it

could be two, even three. Massa, just making a move. Getting past

the Jean-Eric Vergne. That was relatively straightforward. But it

is Button who has got to try to do that himself now. And there is a

bit of debris on the track. I think that is a straw hat that has been

blown onto the circuit, so someone's getting a sunburnt head

in the grandstand! Alonso has got past the Williams, just like his

team asked him to do, he is charging! He has moved up into

fifth place. Remember, we have got some people having made pit stops

already. Absolutely crucial for Vettel, with Kobayashi running in

third place, just under 19 seconds behind him, if Vettel can get the

gap out to 20 seconds, he can get into the pits and get back out in

third place. As we see the replay of Alonso going past Maldonado. We

have got the Lotus boys out in the pit lane. The Force India crew are

also out in the pit lane. So, this compromises Raikkonen coming in for

his spot. Romain Grosjean is still out there, 14 seconds behind Vettel.

And Kobayashi also stopping. Kobayashi is behind Raikkonen. So,

Kobayashi losing out a little bit. And Sauber perhaps not turning that

car around as quickly as they could changing around with those pit

stops. Raikkonen's move earlier was absolutely crucial for him. Alonso

is staying out for the moment. DAVID COULTHARD: That was Kobayashi

and Sauber reacting to the fact... RADIO: Lewis, let's see if we can

get a few cars while our tyres are fighting it just in the braking

area, but Hamilton moves up to seventh place. He is behind Mark

Webber, who has not stopped yet. Michael Schumacher is still out

there, he has not stopped yet, either. Hamilton, who has, is

bearing down on him. Yes, the top seven cars currently have yet to

stop. Hamilton is now 36 seconds off the leader at the moment.

Ferrari coming out, this will be for Alonso. We have got the McLaren

team just getting their kit out of the way. Lovely stop again from

Ferrari. Alonso is going to rejoin, let's see where he comes back out,

on the softer tyre. He had a couple of new tats of softer tyres still

available to him. Raikkonen trying to get past, as they come down into

turn two, but he is in front of the Lotus! Raikkonen tries to attack,

but Alonso is making it difficult for the Lotus driver to get past.

And now, Alonso can pick up some speed on those softer tyres, and he

should be able to stay ahead of Raikkonen. The key thing for

Raikkonen is, he is in the DRS activation zone, so this is an

opportunity for him. If he does not get the chance to pass him here, on

the new tyres... On board with The race leader comes into the pits.

Sebastian Vettel, in the Red Bull, with a big, big advantage, coming

in for his first stop. Lap number 16, he has gone further than some

thought would be possible. Lotus are reacting to that, it

looks like Romain Grosjean is coming in as well. Sebastian Vettel

has the softer tyres put on. And we will now see Grosjean taking his

pit stop. But take my word for it, he has just done a stop! But it is

clear air for Vettel. Absolutely clear air, he has not got to worry

about traffic. And there is Grosjean rejoining, in front of

Hamilton. And he is on the soft tyres. Both Grosjean and Vettel

will have to stop again this afternoon, to pick up the harder,

prime tyres. That's right. You have to use each tyre at some point

during the race. We saw Grosjean getting past Lewis, and he remains

just ahead of him, after the pit stops. But the Red Bull of

Sebastian Vettel has a very healthy gap indeed. Gary, give us your

thoughts on what we have seen in terms of the timing of the pit

stops. Some of them have been a bit earlier than I expected. Vettel

Benz and stretch it out as much as possible. He was losing about a

second a lap, but Grosjean was losing slightly more compared with

his own best time. So, I think for Red Bull, it is looking like a very

good strategy. Webber has come up, it will be interesting to see

whether he tries to stretch something out of it, because that

will be the only way he can try to get something out of his situation.

This is for race position. Crucially, Alonso, on the fresh a

set of tyres, and Webber has systematically been running wide in

turn 20. Alonso looking down the inside into the last corner. Webber

goes a bit wide, and this will allow Alonso to get a good drive

coming in to turn one. He has to have a look at Webber coming into

turn two. He is on the fresher tyres, he has to make use of it. Is

he going round the outside? He is trying to. We just changed shot at

the critical moment there! But has also managed to get past in the

background? He has indeed. Yes, you can tell because everybody in the

grandstand stood up and cheered. Alonso has found his way past the

Red Bull, Alonso on much fresher tyres. That is brave stuff from

on Bruno Senna in the Williams. He goes around the outside of him very

tidily. No problem at all. Alonso charging, and the fans are living

this. He is going to have to get past Michael Schumacher next.

do you think? Turn 17? Inside or outside? He will have to give it a

go, although Michael will not make it too easy.

RADIO: Looking after the tyres in the places we talk about should

help. I have been doing it every lap! So, Lewis, the plan not

working quite as they had hoped. You can see the car systematically

running wide on the exit of turn 20. The cars concertina down into the

following turn, it is an absolute traffic jam, it is like the and 25!

Now, on the outside, at turn two, but Michael Schumacher is having

none of it. But now, Alonso well placed on the exit... Coming into

turn four, and through goes Alonso. Michael just about gives him space.

Webber trying to take advantage of the loss of momentum, and Webber

switching from side to side, but cannot find the space. There's

another standing ovation for Alonso. Yes, and we saw Kimi Raikkonen and

Kobayashi battling with each other. This is Grosjean going round the

outside of di Resta, who's yet to stop this afternoon. So, Vettel

still leading the race, but running in second place is di Resta,

because he has not stopped yet. This is a good stint from him.

Button is at the back of this group, in 15th position. Michael

Schumacher holding up a whole load of cars here. All of this is

playing into the hands of Vettel. As we see Bruno Senna, having a

look at Michael Schumacher. Mark Webber trying to take

advantage as well. Raikkonen gets past Webber as a result of that.

Kobayashi trying to do likewise. Remember, they are on different

tyre strategies. So, some of these have got good tyres under them.

Mark Webber is coming in, he has had enough of that particular

battle. Kimi Raikkonen just trying to get past Bruno Senna. Senna

staying out a little longer on this set of tyres, going as far as he

possibly can on his first stint. This in a coming out behind

Schumacher. So, they have gone as far as lap 20, which could even be

a one-stop strategy. Look at them, side by side. Contact! There's

contact! Senna and Kobayashi! And he has got it pointing the right

way again. But there is damage to his car. Senna is effectively out

of this race. It was just bunching up so much, David. It was indeed.

Coming through for fifth position, running down to the swing bridge,

and we saw that Kimi Raikkonen was able to get the pass. And then

Kobayashi thought, I will have some of that, and he was closed up

against the wall, contact was made, it looks like a racing incident to

me. But we will wait and see some Kobayashi's car. Surely he will be

coming in to change that front wing. He will indeed. Mercedes are out in

the pit lane. We are also hearing about Michael, with a new set of

options on. Here, we can see it, Kobayashi, probably using a bit of

KERS, up the inside. He then gets on the brakes, but a bit late.

There was a puncture on the right rear of the Williams. Going through

six, Bruno Senna goes to take his line, and does not realise that

cobia she was there. Let's wait and see what the stewards feel about it,

whether there is any need to look at that. You can see a replay of

Alonso going down the outside of Webber, and almost into the back of

the Williams in front. Brave stuff, that was a replay from earlier, of

course. Senna did not actually hit anything, I don't think, but I

think the car might have got away undamaged. So Senna probably will

be able to continue, once he has come out of the pits again, because

afternoon. It was a difficult qualifying and the race has just

got even more tricky. Michael Schumacher has just been given a

message that they are reverting to Plan B. Whatever that was! There

was no actual damage, it should not have been enough to damage the

suspension. So Bruno sat on his way again. Sebastian Vettel continues

to lead. Hamilton is third. Paul di Resta or going deep into this race

without having made a pit stop. Jensen Button currently in 10th

place. I think it is only Paul di Resta

who has not made us stop. And here he is now trying to fend off

Fernando Alonso. Paul does not do anything silly

with the defence there. Struggling a bit with the rear. But

if he can just hang on in there. Sebastian Vettel still setting very

rear brake temperatures are high. So he will be encouraged to lift

out of the throttle. And hit the brake pedal just to try to take out

some of the energy. Sebastian Vettel still flying out in front.

Gary, just looking at those Flat times that Sebastian is still able

to achieve, he has got such a comfortable advantage. They can

play any strategy they like it? They can. I think there will still

run to their schedule. Paul di Resta or trying to stretch it out

but I think he's just losing too much time now, it is just falling

away too much. Yes Kimi Raikkonen has just gone past him very easily

indeed. That incident is to be investigated, between Kobayashi and

Bruno Senna. Maldonado taking full advantage of

the fact that Paul di Resta has very little grip available and goes

to give it maximum push. A drive through penalty for Bruno's sell-

out for causing a collision at! -- Bruno Senna. The stewards of course

have multiple camera angles. That will cost him plenty.

Nico Hulkenberg just chasing Felipe Massa.

Locks up in sympathy! It seems to be, at around this circuit. -- to

Friday. But still being chased by Hulkenberg.

Kobayashi suffered accident damage and that has dropped him away down

the order now, in 17th position. But all of the cars are still

running. Sebastian Vettel is the race leader

at this afternoon, 20 seconds away from Romain Grosjean.

The track temperature today is 45 degrees. Done up Riyadh dope has

got that plays, he has managed to nip past Sergio Jerez.

That is opposed to his hopes because Toro Rosso have been

last place, one lap down. Meanwhile Romain Grosjean has just

set a new fastest lap. It is a fair bit quicker than Hamilton and

Fernando Alonso behind him. course he is going to have to stop

again. Fernando Alonso is closing the gap

on Lewis Hamilton. We could be seeing them going wheel to wheel

soon. Vitali Petrov has also just stopped,

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 52 seconds

a couple of cars coming into the into the pits.

Jensen Button sent on his way once again on the harbour at compound

tyres. That judge harder compound Ferrari. He is chasing down Felipe

Massa. Hulkenberg chases him down the DRS zone.

Behind them is still that gap back to Daniel Ricciardo. Something has

happened with the Heikki Kovalainen it. He had contact with the back of

Jean-Eric Vergne. He must have slip-streamed back with the DRS.

That is what a delaminated tyre looks like. There was no need for

Jean-Eric Vergne to do that little moved to the right. Heikki

Kovalainen holding position. I'm not quite sure what Jean-Eric

Vergne was thinking at that moment. He may be thought he was going to

Clear Kovalinen. But it was just not necessary to beat weaving

around it. Kovalinen must be wondering what it

is about his car that he gets hit when he is going down that section

of the track. Because a few years ago at Valencia at he got hit by

Mark Webber at the same place. And the safety car is out on the

circuit. Jean-Eric Vergne has made it back but I reckon there's too

much damage to the back of the car. Romain Grosjean it in the pits as

well. That is interesting because he is coming in as the safety car

comes out. He's going for that early stop. In fact several cars

are coming in. Using this moment to change on to another set of tyres.

Problems again in the pits for Hamilton! And Fernando Alonso gets

past him. Miserable news warm McLaren. It takes for ever to get

Hamilton out. Was that misinformation from polite

signalling? Did the front Jack Kyle? -- fail? It looks like the

front jack just fell away. And his does the same thing. How strange is

out there, even under the safety car. More than the actual tyre, it

is probably the fact that they know there is some magnesium wheel lying

there. Jean-Eric Vergne, it is not easy listening, but I think that

was his mistake. We have got Vettel into the pits now. He will still

come out with a comfortable lead, despite the safety car. But of

course, it will then be reduced down, once they all gathered

together. But he has taken advantage of the safety car to make

his pit stop, and he rejoins the fray. Behind him on track, it will

be the HRT of Narain Karthikeyan, I think. But they all have to stick

to a certain speed, under safety car conditions. Gary, what are your

thoughts with this safety car? RADIO: We think we are in sixth

position, with 28 laps to go. We do not want to be stopping again.

would imagine that is the story for many of the guys. Gary, your

thoughts on the safety car? GARY ANDERSON: It is always better

to come in when the safety car is out, because you do not have to do

that slower lap. The only real loser I think is Hamilton, with

that pit-stop. Again, another problem. The front Jack probably

costs more than a Marussia, and to see that fail, it was very dramatic.

But we do have a new system this year, in so far as the lapped cars

will be waved past, Joe Vettel will find himself with Sebastian

Grosjean behind him. -- so Vettel. Quite clearly, Jean-Eric Vergne

moves across towards Kovalainen as we see this replay, and makes the

contact. It will be interesting to see what the initial reaction of

Jean-Eric Vergne will be. But you can see how fragile the material is

on the front of the cars. At that sort of speed, it is no surprise

that you're going to get an instantaneous failure. But the

upside of it, the drivers are completely OK, of course, which

allows us to have a Grand Prix which is looking a lot more

interesting, as we get into the second half, now that everything

has been closed up. Romain Grosjean will have the opportunity to breed

the fumes of the Red Bull. Let's just run through the order as it

stands. There have been some big changes. Vettel leads, Sebastian

Grosjean in second place, but look is running in third, it is Fernando

Alonso. He has come from 11th plays on the grid. He is up in third

place, ahead of Raikkonen, ahead of Hamilton, of course. Hamilton,

leading the Championship coming into this race. So, Alonso and

Ferrari have turned around what was a disappointing day yesterday, and

they have the potential today to score used for points once again.

Daniel Ricardo, in the Toro Rosso, did not come into the pits for his

second stop, so he is still running with the leaders, in fourth

position. Meanwhile, the inquiry begins in to what happened in that

pit-stop at McLaren. For Paul di Resta, this has hurt him. He was on

the one stop strategy. Yes and No, it has allowed him to take some

energy out of the tyres, by following the safety car. Ricardo

in fourth at the moment, but that will be short-lived. Looking down,

and just trying to read the notes here, so it might be a tall order

for Paul to get a point this afternoon. But the big loser, as

Gary said, Lewis Hamilton. McLaren, once again, difficulties during the

pit stop. If I heard Gary correctly, he said the front Jack probably

cost more than the Marussia! In the end, the release mechanism failed,

for whatever reason. There's the signal that the lapped cars can now

overtake the safety car, to go through and rejoin the back of the

queue. Kovalainen going through, so his car not too badly damaged in

that incident earlier. There's Senna being waved through. So,

Vettel has Grosjean behind him, then Alonso. Karthikeyan just

making his way up, to be waved through. This is going to make for

a fascinating restart. The leaders have all done their two stops. But

we are still expecting to see stops for Ricardo, for Rosberg, for

Michael Schumacher and indeed for Michael Webber. -- for Mark Webber.

But they may well leave that for some time now, going deeper into

the race before they make their second pit stops. So, Vettel's

large advantage, completely negated. The question is, does Grosjean's

Lotus have what it takes to really challenged Vettel now? If this was

Canada, I would be saying, absolutely, he has a car quick

enough to win the Grand Prix. But on the evidence of what we have

seen so far this weekend, Vettel has been absolutely able to control

the pace out front. There was no real need for him to have a 22nd

lead in many ways, but they now find themselves on different tyres

of course. So it will be an interesting battle to see the

performance difference with those different tyres. Among the man who

has gained track position through this phase, Mark Webber. -- another

man. Yes, Sebastian Vettel has controlled this race from the front.

I think actually they are both on the harder tyres. So, they are on

the same tyre. I think Alonso also on the harder tyre. So there is a

similar strategy in terms of tyre use, but what is not always the

same, Gary, cars can react differently to the two different

compounds? That's correct. It is just one of

those things. If you have got a bit of under Spear with the harder tyre,

then you will get a lot more understeer with the soft tyre, and

vice versa. -- understeer. The teams during the pit stop, when

they are changing the tyre compound, would also change the set-up with

the wings a little bit. The cars are just being gathered

together, and then the race will restart. That's Christian Horner,

are they going to be about to take a hat-trick of wins here in

Valencia? Or are they going to be denied by the young Romain Grosjean,

who could still become our eighth different winner this year, some 25

years after the Lotus name last won a Grand Prix. Let's hear from Jean-

Eric Vergne, who's talking to Lee McKenzie. Just tell us what

happened, whose fault was it? don't know whose fault it is. For

me, I was clearly in front of him. I have not watched the video. I

prefer to watch it first. To me, it looks like a racing incident. It is

just a shame not to finish the race. I was going with a good pace. But

that is bracing. It is my first retirement of the season. Bad luck.

-- that is racing. So, coming out quickly did not do him any favours,

because what was a puncture turned into a lot of damage for the car.

But we have still got 22 cars running, as we are waiting for the

signal to see whether the safety car will be coming in. But there

are still a couple of cars catching up, I think. That is the issue,

with this system, of allowing the car has to overtake, the upside is

that we get the cars in race order, and they do not have to battle past

lapped cars, but the downside is in Waiting For everybody to regain

their position at the back of the pack. All the drivers will now be

putting maximum heat into the brakes, trying to get the heat

radiating into the tyres. Sebastian Vettel will get the chance to

control the pace. He will be allowing the safety car to

disappear into the distance, and I would expect him to bolt any time

before they get down to the corner. It looks like he has started to go

now. The pack have gone with him, so he does not have a clear lead.

Almost catching the safety car. race gets under way once again, and

Kimi Raikkonen tries to get past the Toro Rosso of Daniel Ricardo,

but loses out! Beckhams Alonso! Try to get past Romain Grosjean for

second place! The Ferrari goes wide, then it has goes tight. Here goes

Alonso! He tries to go round the outside! He is through! Fernando

Alonso is into second place! Romain Grosjean goes back down to third.

May be the Lotus engineer might wish he had worn his driver that

Alonso had perfected that technique earlier on Mark Webber. Fantastic

stuff. It was oh, so close as they came out of turn two. The Spanish

crowd will be delighted, and not just because of the football. Their

man here has come into second place! Massa makes contact! At

think it was Kobayashi. And it looked like there was some debris.

Could there be another safety car? Hamilton on Raikkonen... Hamilton

has managed to get past the Lotus. That was a crucial move for

Hamilton. Michael Schumacher is behind. I think he has a puncture

at the rear. And the front tyre is severely flat as well. What had

been a reasonable run for Massa... Vettel has a problem! He has got a

puncture, has he? Sebastian Vettel is dropping back down the order!

Major drama here in the European Grand Prix! Vettel has slowed to a

stop. Adrian Newey cannot believe it! He is not going to take a hat-

trick of wins in Valencia. Not only that, we now have Fernando Alonso

leading the European Grand Prix in Spain. Is Vettel in a position

where they can recover the car?. could have another safety car, I'm

not sure. Alonso leads in Valencia! Romain Grosjean in second place. So,

we have got yellow flags but no sign of the safety car just yet.

Third place is still Daniel Ricardo, in the Toro Rosso. Then it is Lewis

Hamilton in fourth. Into the pits comes Massa. While one Ferrari

leads, the other one in trouble in the pits, with a puncture. We will

get another view in a while of exactly what caused that, although

I believe Kobayashi was involved, even though he has not come into

the pits himself. There is a problem somewhere. Have they found

some damage, or did the wheel not fit properly? Oh, a different set.

That was strange. Hamilton is going to get past the Toro Rosso! Yes, no

worries at all. He is up into third place. Look how close Grosjean was

to the back of a Monza. Alonso is not running away with this.

Suddenly we have got a real race on our hands here. We have got the

yellow flag, but I think Raikkonen had the pass before the flag. He

should be OK. Deciding not to have a safety car when you have marshals

on the track. We have got yellow flags, of course, the drivers are

meant to slow down. This is a replay of what happened with Massa.

He got a bit wide into turn 10. I think Massa was the innocent victim

there. Rob Smedley rubs his head. This was where Vettel suddenly

slowed down, that we have no idea why yet. You can see the response

of Vettel, he cannot believe it. He is out, after dominating this race,

and looking at three wins in a row in Valencia. And you can see the

response from the crowd, with also leading. But Grosjean has been told

by his team, your tyres are lasting better than Fernando's. Do not

panic, stay in this one. DAVID COULTHARD: Grosjean can win

this race, 100%. I think he has the faster car this afternoon. This is

going to take all of his experience to try to keep Grosjean behind

Alonso. Meanwhile, Webber goes of Grosjean. Hamilton will have

every chance of closing the gap himself. Maldonado having to be

quite defensive in the Williams. This little group is all tied

together as they fight over fifth place. Daniel Ricciardo doing a

good job. He is at the front of this group at the moment. Maldonado

tries to attack Mark Webber. He is doing a fine job. He is indeed.

He's been told Schumacher's tyres are only four laps fresher than his

tyres. Don't make it easy for anyone, you are in that position on

merit, he has been told. Michael will have to work for it if he is

to get past. Out of turns two and three, Ricciardo looked better than

Michael Schumacher out of that section. There's no chance for

Michael Schumacher to get any closer. Up towards 108 they come. -

- To No. 8. It is turning into one of the most interesting races there

has been in Valencia. Mark Webber's plight not withstanding a couple of

years ago, Vettel's dominance of the early part of the race, but he

is now a dash out. We have a battle between Alonso... Michael

Schumacher get past Brickyard though, D o r s doing its job. -- D

ers doing its job. Mark Webber looking to find his way past the

Alonso, he will have the advantage as Mark Webber shows his nose.

Incident involving Hamilton for potentially ignoring yellow flags.

That could be news for Hamilton. I wonder how that will get sorted.

That would have been for Vettel's car. It is fairly clear cut, you

have your GP as marshalling system through? He is trying. Daniel

Ricciardo came in the pits. He has not been able to hold out any

longer before making that pit stop. For a little while he must have

enjoyed himself, running in front of some established Formula One

names. It will be interesting to see the outcome of that Hamilton

incident. Normally the marshalling system is pretty clear cut if they

are looking into it. We can see Sebastian Vettel. He is

disappointed, clearly, but sporting enough to wave to the fans. He

knows he could not have done anything different this afternoon.

Mark Webber leaves the door open for Maldonado. He pushes him out

wide on to the kerb. I think he thought Mark was going to follow

Ricky yarder into the pit lane. Mark losing another place on the

exit. Alonso has established a little bit of a gap over Grosjean.

Still plenty of time to go in this race and Grosjean will not be

thinking of getting past in straight away. Hamilton is a little

bit further behind. What I think I started before I interrupted myself

is that Grosjean has the advantage of about three-tenths of a second a

lap. In effect, he can sit there quite comfortably behind Alonso,

maintaining that one-second gap, not taking so much out of his tyres

because he is getting that reduction in drag as they run down

the back straight. Biding his time. I love the Mexican waves you get

every time Alonso comes past the grandstands. Never won in Valencia.

He has had a difficult time at his second home venue. Did not finish

the first race here in 2000 date. He has had some finishes, but never

do victory he has been cheered onto. Hamilton still chased by Raikkonen.

The two notices in the top four. -- Lotuses. Raikkonen closing to the

back of Lewis Hamilton. Jones's Delyn 5th, but we are expecting him

to make another pit-stop. -- Schumacher is still in fifth.

Schumacher will have to come in at some point. Maldonado is running

leading in the early stages. Looking to pull away after the

restart, but something went wrong with the Cup. We look -- we've also

lost Kobayashi after what looked to be an incident between himself and

Massa. And we've lost the Jean-Eric Vergne as well. Karthikeyan has

picked up a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pit lane.

Sergio Perez is trying to get past Jenson Button. He can't quite

finish it off. Button just holding on to ninth place from the Sauber.

Very fair have Jenson to leave the space. Perez came from a long way

back. The message was quite clear. Perez wants to make his move.

still unable to slip through as yet. It looks like Button is struggling

with the rear tyre. Look how wide he is on Exits. Under pressure from

Perez and another man under pressure is Lewis Hamilton from

Kimi Raikkonen. Paul di Resta is on a one-stop strategy, not able to

run quite as fast. Mark Webber, having rejoined with a fresh set of

tyres, is the fastest man of all in the first sector. Perez on the

softer tyre and he seems to be making the most of that. Perez's

pace in Montreal was amazing. I was talking to one of the other team

engineers on the way out here... A lock up again from Button. They

were so impressed with Perez's run of laps in the latter stages.

Vettel heading over to the pit wall. We have not seen that very often in

his recent career. A replay of him going to see Christian Horner and

hopefully we will discover what the problem was. But he is out. A new

fastest lap from Fernando Alonso. About eight-tenths the second he

pulled out on Grosjean on the last lap. We hear so much this year

about the tyre management and keeping them in the right operating

window. His Fernando sending a message to Grosjean? Get a move on.

Let me see if I can burn out your tyres, or is he trying to take the

last out of these tyres before diving for another pit-stop?

little slow from Grosjean. Still chasing down Alonso. It is easy to

forget that Alonso started in 11th place! He is slow! Grosjean has a

problem. I thought for a moment it looked like him was slow off the

bridge and I thought he was just taking it easy. What is going on?

Fees reliable Formula One cars, 24 cars finished here last year. We

have lost the lead and the guy in second place. Grosjean is out,

Hamilton is up to second. Raikkonen will now be third. Looking for a

gap in the wall. So disappointing for this young Frenchman. Sorry

about that. Battery issues, we lost the alternator, we could not do

anything. Lost the alternator! It failed. Electric power has gone for

Romain Grosjean. He gets out of the car. You have to feel for this

young man. It has all gone wrong when he could perhaps have had a

chance of winning. Cruel luck. The Renault engine is normally very

reliable, but the alternator has gone. They could not maintain the

charge. When you see him there, finding a gap in the fence and

getting ready to push the car back. That sends a clear message to me.

This is a young man that absolutely is comfortable with where he is in

Formula One. He's bitterly disappointed, but still trying to

do the right thing after his car has broken down. A Perez has got

past Button. Schumacher has made his pit stop. We wondered if he was

Thaiday out, but he has gone on to softer tyres. This is how Perez got

past... Up into the last turn. A bit like we saw with Maldonado on

Webber. Nothing Jenson could do. You could see Martin Whitmarsh with

a look of frustration for Jenson's race, but Hamilton, 3.9 seconds

behind Alonso. Does Hamilton have any answer to the Ferrari? The gap

is just under four seconds. Hamilton hasn't had the pace that

we saw from him in qualifying yesterday. Fernando Alonso looks

comfortable in front. We are on board with Webber. He has

Schumacher in front of him. Trying to get past for 11th place.

Schumacher is not that quick at the moment. I think Webber is on the

softer tyre. Michael is still trying to get up to speed on the

softer tyres. It doesn't look like Michael has any speed in a straight

line. Mark was in a good position out of turn 14. Does Michael have

an issue? He has done his pit stop and he is pick out -- back out and

he is slow. Let's keep an eye on the Mercedes. Is it just a warm-up

issue? It is a new set of options issue? It is a new set of options

he had available. Whatever the issue was, it seems to have cleared

issue was, it seems to have cleared itself. Or is it that the Red Bull

is just very good and Webber has not had the chance to show it in

this race. We saw how quick Vettel was in the early stages. The two of

them are actually behind Vitaly Petrov in the Caterham, currently

in tenth place. True to their work, he has done three starts this

afternoon. -- true to their word. It has been an impressive weekend

for Caterham. Kovalainen did not have that much luck. Mark Webber

went on the attack. Michael going defensive into 12. Marx thought he

would get him with a cheeky pass into 14, but bailed out early. He

was able to close up on Michael in the run-up to 17. Meanwhile, up

front, Alonso... You are doing a great job. Can you win it? Three-

tenths quicker on the last lap. I thought Raikkonen was staying with

him for a moment ago, but losing a length or two over the last half

lap. That is Fernando Alonso, chasing his Lewis Hamilton. We will

keep an eye on the lap times. Raikkonen not far behind. Three

world champions going at it for the final 13 laps in Valencia. On that

lap, a good lap from Alonso again. Two-tenths faster than Hamilton. It

was also a good luck from Kimi Raikkonen, who was faster than both

of them. The McLaren message was interesting. We thought they were

just doing two stops this afternoon. It is questionable whether Hamilton

has the pace to catch Alonso, but do they think Ferrari will burn out

these tyres and have to do a third stop this afternoon? Just to

compound the difficulty for Hamilton, he has mirrors for love

Raikkonen. I think Righton and... He has to show that he has the

racing spirit that he had the first time around. He's been a little bit

soft with his passes this year. Let's hear from Sebastian Vettel.

So frustrating, you've been dominating for so long, what was

the problem? We don't know yet. I lost drive. I had to give way to

the other people. The engine stalled and switched off and there

was nothing we could have done. At the moment it is not clear exactly

what the problem was. Maybe a bit similar to the issue mark had on

Friday. Were there any indications before it happened? Did you have

any worries we were leading? really. The safety car was not

ideal for us. It might be that the retirement is, in some regards,

also to help with the safety car. A by his engineers that they think

Fernando Alonso's tyres will be going off before the end of the

race, a bit like Montreal. They have said to Kimi, if you can get

past Lewis, you can win this thing. So, Kimi has been told in no

uncertain terms that the victory is still on. I wonder whether Alonso

can keep these tyres going. It was so difficult at the end of the

Canadian Grand Prix for him, he stayed out, and dropped back from

first to fifth. We have seen it happen this year, Kimi Raikkonen

went from second to 14th in China. So, all the teams are very wary of

it. But all of these drivers believe they can win this race.

DAVID COULTHARD: Of course, they all stopped at the same time under

the safety car, so, presuming that they are on a similar type of

Kolarov, then this is a straight run on car performance. Raikkonen

has certainly got more pace than Hamilton at the moment. You could

see that little kick at the rear out of the previous corner, and it

is that kind of thing which can overheat the tyres. The drivers

have to be so sensitive on the throttle. Michael is now into tenth

place. Up to the next chicane. Yes, he has gone through. And so, Petrov

has now unfortunately been pushed out of the points. It is still

Alonso leading, 3.7 seconds, the gap. Again, he was quicker than the

two behind him. He just eased off a bit on the last lap, so he may be

comfortable with that gap. He has got a bit of a window. They have

just got to be careful in the braking zone, to avoid locking. And

if there is such a thing as people power, then he will be getting a

large dose of it this afternoon. That's totally true, the fans

pushing him to try to get victory here in Valencia, looking to be the