Fernando Alonso and Pastor Maldonado
It was all smiles after qualifying for Fernando Alonso and Pastor Maldonado, but both will be sternly focused to beat the other to the first corner from the start of the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday. Reuters

When and where: The Spanish Grand Prix gets underway at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona gets underway at 8 a.m. ET. Live coverage will be provided by Speed. Live timing and statistics will be available on Formula1.com. In the U.K., a live stream will be available via SkyGo.

Preview: Saturday's qualifying in Barcelona proved to be another session rife with incident and unpredictability in what is turning into a classic Formula One season.

There was already plenty to talk about in the immediate aftermath to qualifying as Jenson Button and Mark Webber both failed to make it through to Q3, while world champion Sebastian Vettel didn't register a time in the final shoot-out. And with Pastor Maldonado setting the second fastest time in his Williams, it was shaping up to be another intriguing grand prix.

But then news broke that pole sitter Lewis Hamilton had been excluded from qualifying. The former world champion failing to have enough fuel in his McLaren to make it back to the pits, after stopping out on the circuit, and still provide the required one liter sample.

It was the latest embarrassing blunder in a season of mishaps for McLaren that has seen them fail to capitalize on their strong pace.

After a stunning lap that saw him 0.578-second ahead of the rest of the field, Hamilton will now start from the back of the grid.

To hear that I'd been excluded from qualifying, was of course extremely disappointing, Hamilton said, according to Formula1.com.

But, now, looking ahead I think it's clear that it's going to be an incredibly tough race for us. Even so, as always, I'll never give up and I'll give it everything I've got. Whatever grid position I start a Grand Prix from, I'll always race my heart out.

Hamilton's exclusion means that Venezuelan Maldonado starts on pole for the first time in his young career.

For sure I will try to win, Maldonado said, according BBC Sport. It is a pleasure to be part of Williams, which is a legendary team. I have a mission to take them back to the top of the grid.

Alongside Maldonado will be Fernando Alonso. But, despite the Spaniard's strong showing in qualifying, there will be much focus on whether the updates to the Ferrari showcased here for the first time are enough to make Alonso a serious contender for the championship.

But, in truth, there remain questions over virtually every team on the grid. A fact that makes this season so exciting. The Red Bull appeared ready to assert themselves after Vettel's win in Bahrain. But with the double world champion having to use up an extra set of soft tires just to make it into Q3, not to mention Webber starting down in 11th after the team wrongly presumed he had done enough to make it into the final period, doubts persist about the cars' pace.

McLaren too, even considering Hamilton's blistering lap, remain open to scrutiny. And not just for the errors that have plagued the team throughout 2012. Arriving in Spain with a new, raised nose, there are still problems with the handling of the car, something that led to Button's disappointing 10th place on the gird.

Perhaps the most consistently impressive team right now is Lotus. After getting both drivers on the podium in Bahrain, Romain Grosjean will start in third on Sunday, one spot ahead of team mate Kimi Raikkonen.

We'll see how it goes tomorrow in the race; the car has usually been better on Sunday than it has been on Saturday, so if that's the case tomorrow we'll be pretty happy, Raikkonen said, according to Formula1.com.

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