| 13:50:58
| Welcome to F1-Live.com and live coverage of the German Grand Prix qualifying session from Hockenheim. As ever, qualifying is split into three sessions, with the slowest five eliminate from Q1 and Q2 leaving the final ten to take race fuel on board and go for the pole position. |
| 13:52:21
| Practice ahead of this session has been close with Lewis Hamilton topping the two Friday sessions and Heikki Kovalainen this morning’s session. Felipe Massa has been right on the pace too for Ferrari, so incidents aside, one of these three drivers are favourites for the all-important pole position. |
| 13:54:22
| Kovalainen set the pace this morning with a best lap of 1:15.621s. Hamilton’s Friday best was a 1:15.025s. Kovalainen was fastest today ahead of Massa, Hamilton, Alonso, Vettel, Trulli, Piquet, Webber, Raikkonen and Rosberg. |
| 13:56:17
| BMW Sauber had a troubled start to the day with Robert Kubica forced to coast back to the pits with a broken half-shaft. The Canadian GP winner was slowest of the 20 runners with Nick Heidfeld 16th. Work to do at BMW Sauber. |
| 13:57:25
| Sebastian Vettel is one to watch for in qualifying as he has been firmly in the top ten for much of the weekend. His target is a top ten start for Toro Rosso. Alonso too is one to watch as he may well go light and try and get amongst the top five runners. |
| 13:58:20
| It is overcast and dry although rain is threatening. It may well hold off as was the case this morning. |
| 14:00:08
| The first round of qualifying is underway and this is a 20 minute session. |
| 14:01:07
| Nico Rosberg is the first man out. |
| 14:01:21
| Adrian Sutil follows Rosberg out. |
| 14:02:09
| Fisichella and Bourdais now going out too. This will be the banker run for most of the front runners and upper mid-field runners. |
| 14:02:50
| Rosberg gets some oversteer on entry onto turn two. |
| 14:03:01
| Others now heading out. |
| 14:03:56
| Not a great first lap from Rosberg on a 1:17.5. |
| 14:04:22
| Rosberg is currently fastest from Bourdais and Fisichella. |
| 14:04:47
| Vettel moves fastest as he runs wide through the final turn. |
| 14:05:22
| Rosberg stays out for a second lap and moves fastest as Raikkonen slots into second. |
| 14:05:54
| The sun is coming out. |
| 14:06:43
| Raikkonen is now fastest from Webber and Rosberg. The fastest times do not count for anything, as long as they are not amongst the slowest five. |
| 14:07:21
| More changes as Raikkonen is now fastest from Massa and Webber. |
| 14:07:31
| The McLaren duo on track. |
| 14:08:31
| The fast runners are using the hard tyre at the moment. Massa improves his own best. |
| 14:08:48
| Kovalainen slots second and splits the Ferraris. |
| 14:09:12
| Hamilton goes into too deep into the hairpin and loses time. |
| 14:09:26
| Heidfeld and Kubica remain in the pits. |
| 14:09:46
| Hamilton moves fastest despite the error. |
| 14:10:19
| Alonso and Piquet on first laps for Renault. |
| 14:11:28
| Alonso moves sixth and Piquet 12th. Hamilton does not improve next time around after running wide at the final turn. |
| 14:11:41
| Heidfeld and Kubica now on track. |
| 14:12:10
| Sutil, Fisichella, Bourdais, Barrichello and Nakajima currently the slowest five BMW aside. |
| 14:12:39
| Kubica moves fifth and Heidfeld P8. |
| 14:12:51
| Piquet locks up into the hairpin and loses time. |
| 14:13:15
| Sutil is now on soft tyres and has a big slide out of the final turn. |
| 14:13:30
| Vettel moves fifth fastest. |
| 14:14:06
| Six minutes remain and Piquet is slowest behind Fisichella, Coulthard, Trulli and Sutil. |
| 14:14:29
| Heidfeld improves and is now fifth. They are now on sift tyres for a final push. |
| 14:15:09
| Most are now in the pits ahead of a final soft tyre run. |
| 14:15:32
| Massa, second fastest, heads back out. |
| 14:16:20
| Raikkonen, Kubica and others now heading out for a frantic few minutes. |
| 14:18:12
| Massa moves fastest for Ferrari. Two minutes remain and most on track. |
| 14:18:34
| Hamilton and Kovalainen in the pits, the rest on track. |
| 14:18:52
| Raikkonen moves second but that means nothing really. |
| 14:19:16
| Sutil, Trulli, Coulthard, Fisichella and Piquet need to improve or they are out. |
| 14:20:06
| Coulthard moves eighth. |
| 14:20:09
| The chequered flag is out. |
| 14:20:47
| Trulli is now fifth as Glock moves sixth. |
| 14:21:13
| Piquet is just 17th and out. |
| 14:21:53
| Eliminated are Fisichella, Sutil, Barrichello, Piquet and Nakajima. |
| 14:22:34
| Kubica was just 14th ahead of Button and blocked by Fisichella while Piquet says he was blocked too. |
| 14:23:20
| So Massa sets the pace on a 1:14.9. As expected at Force India, but a disappointing run for Piquet, Barrichello and Nakajima. |
| 14:23:32
| A short pause now ahead of Q2. |
| 14:27:03
| The second round of qualifying is underway. This is a 15 minute session. |
| 14:29:36
| No one on track at the moment. |
| 14:31:13
| Raikkonen is the first driver out after four minutes complete. |
| 14:31:34
| Raikkonen is on the soft tyre. Massa and Glock follow out. |
| 14:31:49
| Hamilton, Webber and others now heading out. |
| 14:32:39
| Now a busy circuit with all but the BMW Sauber duo on track. |
| 14:33:38
| Raikkonen records a 1:14.9 on his first lap. |
| 14:34:06
| Massa moves fastest from Raikkonen with Glock now third. |
| 14:34:28
| Hamilton now fastest on a mid 1:14s lap. |
| 14:35:24
| Kovalainen is fourth at the moment ahead of Trulli and Alonso. |
| 14:35:54
| They are now pitting ahead of a second run as Heidfeld and Kubica are on their first laps. |
| 14:36:47
| Kovalainen takes soft tyres and heads back out. |
| 14:38:03
| Kubica moves seventh. |
| 14:38:28
| Heidfeld moves P10. The BMW duo will need to run again. |
| 14:38:55
| Kovalainen is the only front-runner out at the moment. |
| 14:39:44
| Kovalainen very wide through the final turn but still moves third. No quite sure why he needed to run though as he is safe. |
| 14:40:06
| Just over two minutes remain and many heading back out. |
| 14:40:29
| Hamilton, Massa and Raikkonen are not running again. |
| 14:41:15
| Bourdais, 14th, is pushing hard and looking to improve. |
| 14:41:44
| Bourdais out brakes himself into the hairpin and that ruins his lap. |
| 14:42:01
| The chequered flag is out. |
| 14:42:18
| Vettel moves eighth. |
| 14:42:29
| Kubica moves fifth. |
| 14:42:54
| Rosberg stays 13th as Coulthard goes eighth. |
| 14:43:04
| Alonso moves fourth. |
| 14:43:42
| Heidfeld is just 12th after running wide into the hairpin. |
| 14:44:09
| So Bourdais, Button, Rosberg, Heidfeld and Glock are eliminated. |
| 14:44:32
| Hamilton was fastest in Q2 with a 1:14.6 best ahead of Massa and Kovalainen. |
| 14:45:18
| A pause now as race fuel is added ahead of Q3. |
| 14:50:06
| The final ten minute round of qualifying is underway. |
| 14:51:45
| Trulli heads out in his Toyota. He is really showing the way to GP2 champion Glock this year. |
| 14:52:19
| Vettel heads out in his Toro Rosso. A great drive to make the top ten. |
| 14:52:47
| With race fuel on board, they will be slower than in Q2. |
| 14:53:07
| Coulthard, Webber, Massa and others now heading out. |
| 14:53:29
| Trulli is on the hard tyre for his first qualifying lap. |
| 14:53:47
| All ten runners on track. |
| 14:54:03
| Trulli records a 1:17.1 |
| 14:54:33
| Raikkonen runs wide through turn one and that will mess up his lap on the soft tyre. |
| 14:55:03
| Raikkonen seems to have trouble turning in as he is understeering. |
| 14:55:35
| Raikkonen slithers to the fastest time. |
| 14:55:52
| Now Massa moves fastest and is much faster than Raikkonen. |
| 14:56:14
| Kovalainen runs off track on entry into the stadium. |
| 14:56:40
| Alonso has moved second behind Massa with Hamilton up to third ahead of Kubica and Raikkonen. |
| 14:57:15
| Kovalainen's error leaves him tenth and it seems Alonso is a factor in what is a light Renault I would guess. |
| 14:57:40
| They are pitting and taking a final set of soft tyres. Just over two minutes remain. |
| 14:58:55
| All ten drivers are on track for a final push. Massa is on the provisional pole at the moment by three tenths of a second. |
| 14:59:41
| Raikkonen on a better lap. |
| 15:00:11
| Raikkonen moves second. |
| 15:00:17
| The chequered flag is out. |
| 15:00:30
| Kovalainen moves second. |
| 15:00:47
| Hamilton moves fastest and beat Massa who also improves. |
| 15:00:59
| Alonso moves fourth fastest. |
| 15:01:11
| Trulli moves fourth. |
| 15:01:44
| So pole position for Lewis Hamilton by two-tenths of a second from Massa. |
| 15:02:37
| Kovalainen starts third ahead of Trulli who has done a great job for Toyota. Alonso is fifth ahead of Raikkonen, Kubica, Webber, Vettel and Coulthard. |
