Philip will be here shortly to take you through this day's short race (14:00 GMT) and grid-setting session (6pm).
The starting lap has started.
We have 19 laps of the longest circuit in Formula 1, David Croft reminds us.
The countdown is underway.
An advantage in Verstappen's favour: his teammate Yuki Tsunoda is in front of him by one place. It's improbable to interfere with the team's main man.
Sky speaking with Sky now: Gary Neville is at the Mercedes team.
Karun Chandhok is looking forward to 2026, speaking with Adrian Newey about his promotion to the team team principal.
There are only sixteen vehicles on the grid. This followed another bad qualifying for the driver: after coming 20th and last in Las Vegas, resulting in an eighth-place finish in the grand prix, he failed to make it out of Q1 once more on Friday. The team have as a result adjusted to his setup and so he will start from the starting area.
Aston Martin's Lance Stroll and the Alpine pair of Gasly and Franco Colapinto are all starting from the same position.
"We'll use the experience for tomorrow," states Isack Hadjar, 11th on the grid. Expect plenty of learning.
It's not all about the drivers' title: McLaren have run away with the team championship but Mercedes, with a 40-point lead over Red Bull, will be hoping to secure the runner-up position this weekend. George Russell can assist in this goal from second place, and Antonelli will start just behind the leader.
Piastri won that day – as he did the previous season, too. The driver from McLaren is attempting a third consecutive win.
Alright, just over twenty minutes to go till the sprint race gets under way. Barring disaster, it's greatest value is as a preview of what is to come, rather than significant in its own right, with just eight championship points available to the winner. Mind you, the runner-up spot here was enough for the driver to claim the title two years ago.
The driver wins the championship following Pérez crashes out of Qatar GP sprint race.
Elena Hartwell is a multidisciplinary artist and educator passionate about fostering creative communities in London.