15:03 Here we go, the grid has formed. One light, two, three, four, five ... GO!

15:02 Phil asks: "Those starting on softs will be praying for a safety car in the first 5 laps. How likely is that?" Very unlikely I'm afraid, no safety cars here so far

15:01 Mapologo asks: "what is the thinking behind the grid setup - pole is either on the left or right of the track - and the direction of the first corner?" Pole is on the left, while the first corner is a right hander. The long back straight is where things tend to get mixed up

15:00 We are away on the formation lap. Unsurprisingly, everyone outside the top ten - who had a free choice of tyres - are starting on the medium tyres

14:59 As if by magic, a radio message has just told Webber which cars to fight at the start. He's told "Alonso and the two McLarens are the important cars" - ultimately meaning keep them behind but those on the softs are less of a worry

14:58 In all honesty, I expect Vettel to get away early, run a but longer than those fighting behind him on the softs but then have to carve his way through the field later in the race. I still make him favourite, mainly because Webber in fourth and Alonso in eighth have to keep out of trouble at the start.

14:56 Of course, it's not just Webber that Vettel could be targeting. He is likely to win the championship today too. A top five finish is good enough for Vettel, or top eight if Alonso finishes second. If Alonso doesn't finish in the top two then Vettel is champion for a fourth time regardless

14:55 Webber believes that he's effectively starting from pole position in P4 on medium tyres, and Vettel will be targeting him at the end of the race if he isn't held up by traffic too much. Could get tasty.

14:53 This race is all about strategy today. Those starting on the softs (Vettel, Rosberg, Hamilton, Massa, Raikkonen and Hulkenberg of the top ten) will likely suffer blistering early on and have to pit somewhere between laps three and ten. That will leave Webber, Alonso and the McLarens - all starting on mediums - able to run longer and leading. Then it depends how quickly Vettel in particular can get through the traffic he is likely to rejoin in...

14:51 We spoke during earlier sessions this weekend about the lack of fans in the stands, but as Sauber's tweet below shows, it's a healthier number today:

Great crowd on the grand stand cheering along! @IndianGPF1 just under 10 minutes to race start. pic.twitter.com/5iCMK1gAWZ

— Sauber F1 Team (@OfficialSF1Team) October 27, 2013

14:48: As always we'd love to hear from you during this race. Either email in to us with your comments using the link above or get in touch via Twitter @ESPNF1

14:46 I hope you've all had time to read that! Another little update comes from Red Bull, where for precautionary reasons the team has legally broken the seal on Vettel's gearbox and changed the dog rings on its 5th and 7th gears as well as the longtitudinal gearbox oil system shuttle valve. So now you know.

14:36 "Pirelli have issued recommendations to the teams over how many laps they should be running on each compound. That's nothing new, it happens at every race, but because the tyres are marginal here the recommendations are a little lower with 15 laps on the softs and 35 laps on the mediums. Pirelli actually made reference to them in the press release and insists its recommendations are no different to the ones it has made at every other race this year and are not binding in the rules.

"The reason some engineers may be touchy about the issue is because the tyres are blistering very quickly in India and destroying performance, especially on the soft compound. In some cases, the softs are offering just three or four laps of useful performance before dropping off significantly. Some teams believe the blistering could be prevented by running lower tyre pressures, thus creating a larger contact patch and reducing the intensity of the energy on the tyre surface. However, under Pirelli's pressure and camber guidelines, which teams do have to stick to, that is not allowed.

The good news for us is that we should see an interesting race from a strategy point of view, but the chances of anybody wanting to run more than 15 laps on the softs and 35 laps on the mediums in a 60 lap race is very slim. Since Friday practice drivers and teams have been gearing up for a two stop race, so under normal circumstances those recommendations won't be breached. The only way it could become an issue is if safety cars significantly mix up the strategies and give the tyres a bit of a breather. Then it is conceivable a driver might attempt to go over the recommendations if they are trying to avoid another stop before the end of the race. But if that does happen it would be easy for the team to explain that to both Pirelli and the stewards."

14:32 Tyres have been another big talking point and Vettel might be on pole but is likely to struggle on the soft tyres. Those on mediums could be caught between a rock and a hard place trying to one-stop as well, and there have been reports that Pirelli has been trying to limit the running teams can do on each tyre. Laurence has been speaking to Pirelli in the paddock to try and decipher the situation for you...

14:30 Hello and welcome to ESPN's live coverage of the Indian Grand Prix. You might have been expecting an easy Sebastian Vettel coronation, but today could be anything but easy for anyone...

Lap 1

Vettel with a good start and he holds on ahead of Hamilton in second. Contact between Webber and Alonso! Alonso's front wing is damaged, Raikkonen says he was hit too. Alonso is down to 10th and Webber in seventh

Lap 2

Vettel leads by 2.4s. Sorry, some drivers did start on softs further back and Vergne and di Resta immediately pit to get rid of them. Van der Garde radios in: "My suspension is broken. Again Chilton - what an idiot!"

Lap 3

Vettel pits already! He had built a big lead already. Alonso has to pit too and he's changed his front wing after that damage. Massa now leads, Vettel rejoins a long way back in the pack. Massa heads Rosberg, Hamilton, Hulkenberg and Raikkonen. Webber is P7

Lap 4

Rosberg is told it's important to get past Massa but he doesn't have DRS at this stage. Replays of the start show Webber touching wheels with Raikkonen and then Alonso hitting the rear of the Red Bull out of Turn 2. Vettel's traction is so impressive at the start of the race.

Lap 5

Massa still leads by 1.1s from Rosberg and Hamilton is the same margin back. Alonso had two bouts of contact at the start, hitting Button too. Vettel has rejoined in 16th behind Bianchi. Alonso radios in to say "I think I damaged something else on the car because the steering is very heavy on the right handers"

Lap 6

Hulkenberg pits. As does Bianchi. Vettel is now up to 15th and behind Bottas. Webber passes Raikkonen in to Turn 4 to take fourth place and he needs to get the laps in now

Lap 7

Massa continuing to lap at a decent pace and Button pits for a set of soft tyres. Strange, that one - not a strategy anyone was expecting! Raikkonen having to defend from Perez as his softs go off but it's futile and Perez - on mediums - is through. Rosberg pits from second place

Lap 8

Raikkonen pits too. Rosberg rejoins behind Vettel while Raikkonen's stop was slow and Button attacks him on softs in to Turn 4. Raikkonen pushes him wide and Vergne overtakes the McLaren as a result

Lap 9

Massa and Hamilton have both pit. Massa rejoins ahead of Rosberg but behind Vettel. Hamilton behind that group. Webber has now been released in to the lead on the medium tyres and is currently lapping marginally quicker than Vettel who is now in sixth and stuck behind Sutil

Lap 10

This is the crucial factor for the race as Vettel needs to clear traffic quickly and he makes it past Sutil at Turn 4 using DRS. Alonso stuck behind Vergne back in 17th place and he's in trouble. Webber's lead over Perez is five seconds with Ricciardo a further five back

Lap 11

Vettel is 14.5s behind Webber and has just got by Grosjean for P4. So far he's doing a very good job of cutting through the field. DRS again for Vettel and he now sets the fastest lap of the race. The charge is on. Hamilton is getting stuck behind Bottas at present - that's the sort of issue Vettel has avoided so far

Lap 12

Here's another car for Vettel to try and jump - Ricciardo for P3. DRS open ... that's too easy. Vettel up to P3 and at the moment he's probably travelling quicker in traffic than out of it! Gutierrez is under investigation for a jump start and currently running in P6 after Grosjean pits following a good 13 laps on the softs

Lap 13

Grosjean rejoins in the middle of the pack but might be able to go to the end on those tyres, depending on how they hold up. Perez dropping off the back of Webber and Vettel gaining

Lap 14

Vettel was much quicker than Webber on that last lap and is cruising up to the leaders. It's all looking very good for him at this stage of the race. Button has had to take a second stop already after that run on the softs and he's down in 19th place

Lap 15

Gutierrez does get a drive through penalty. It's not a good start for Gutierrez - he rolled forward slightly and then lost time afterwards! Vettel with another fastest lap, he's really driving well. Webber is 13s up the road though and Perez between them. Massa now 24s off the lead

Lap 16

Gutierrez yet to take his penalty and he's holding off Massa at the moment. Rosberg closing in behind both of them while Hamilton is 3.8s further back. Just the one retirement - van der Garde - so far

Lap 17

Vettel with another fastest lap but Webber isn't that much slower. Perez is only 3.6s ahead of Vettel now and about 0.8s a lap slower than the Red Bulls. Gutierrez pitting has released Massa for a bit. Button told he's racing Alonso , they're 19th and 14th respectively

Lap 18

Perez told that the car behind him is Vettel and that "we're not racing him so don't lose too much time" - don't think there will be much defending when Vettel catches up. That's another reason Vettel has found it easier to climb back through the field (aside from driving well)

Lap 19

As soon as I say Vettel is driving well he misses the apex at Turn 3 by a country mile and will have to sit behind Perez for a lap. The gap from Webber to Vettel is 12.2s. Alonso passes Gutierrez in to Turn 1 for P13 - but then Gutierrez returns the favour in to Turn 4

Lap 20

Not Vettel's best lap and he lost 0.1s to Webber but he's now right on the back of the McLaren ahead. Massa has Rosberg right behind him for P6 too, with Ricciardo and Sutil still lapping ahead. Bottas going long at the start is 9th and lapping quite well already

Lap 21

That's it - Vettel is through on Perez and up in to second place. Using the DRS is ensuring Vettel sets some very fast first sectors. He's bolted now. Alonso muscles up the inside of Gutierrez out of Turn 4 and is up in to 13th - nowhere near the top two so Vettel is set for his fourth title today

Lap 22

Webber leads Vettel by 11.8s. Perez has done well so far and is 13s clear of fourth-placed Ricciardo. Sutil is 2.3s behind Ricciardo and has Massa 1.9s behind him. The next phase of this race will be in a few laps when the medium tyre runners pit for a first time

Lap 23

11.6s sounds like such a big gap, but Webber and Vettel are both in the same shot thanks to the length of the back straight down to Turn 4. Both are passing backmarkers now. Hamilton is cruising up to the back of the Massa and Rosberg battle now for P6

Lap 24

Webber has responded but the gap he has over Vettel just isn't big enough at this stage. Replays show Rosberg passing Massa then losing out again at Turn 4. Hulkenberg defending from Raikkonen and he radios in "That wasn't an advantage for going off-track, he forced me off". They both had past Bottas too.

Lap 25

Raikkonen locks up attacking Hulkenberg and replays show Bottas locked up at Turn 4, ran wide causing Hulkenberg to go off track, but Hulkenberg still got past. That could be looked at. Another quick lap from Vettel and it's looking like his race at present.

Lap 26

Rahul asks: "Do you think force India can get points in home ground priority?" Sutil looks like he's in the mix up in P5 now, while di Resta is in 12th but having stopped could be close to 10th come the end.

Vettel cuts Webber's lead to 10.2s. Gutierrez and Vergne pit - that's a second stop for Vergne

Lap 27

Hamilton right on the back of the Massa and Rosberg battle now, Rosberg might need to pit to get out of the fight and find clear air. The mediums are holding up well further up the field on the likes of Perez's car

Lap 28

Rosberg does indeed pit and rejoins in 13th place. He'll need to go 32 laps on this set of tyres but that doesn't look impossible at all. Webber pits from the lead and goes for the soft tyres...

Lap 29

Interesting strategy from Webber. I assume he's going to thrash the tyres and then stick on the mediums to the end. Perez has gone for the same strategy and has rejoined right behind Massa and Hamilton. Vettel now leads from Ricciardo and Sutil

Lap 30

Replays show Grosjean weaving behind Gutierrez and complaining that the Sauber made more than one change of direction when defending position. That is under investigation. Webber is now going very quickly and Perez is right behind Hamilton already and looks set to breeze past the Mercedes on his soft tyres ... DRS open but it's the soft rubber that does it out of Turn 4.

Lap 31

Webber with the fastest lap of the race and he's 10.6s behind Vettel. This strategy could see Webber regain the lead if Vettel pits soon and then he'll have fresher tyres at the end of the race.

Lots of stops elsewhere, Massa, Hamilton, di Resta and Alonso all in

Lap 32

Vettel also pits. A good stop and Webber now leads again. Webber is already half a second slower though as the soft tyres give up and he might pit very soon. Ricciardo and Sutil are still running on their first sets of mediums. Grosjean passes Massa in to Turn 4 and that's P10 for the Lotus

Lap 33

Webber pits again for medium tyres and Vettel is a long way clear - not enough tyre advantage here to help Webber and he's behind Ricciardo now who hasn't stopped yet. The incident between Hulkenberg and Bottas is now under investigation for exceeding track limits

Lap 34

Fortunately for Webber, Ricciardo finally pits, as does Perez for a second time. Vettel does the fastest lap of the race and is told he needs his tyres for the whole stint, not just now. I can't see anything stopping him winning from here though. Ricciardo put on the soft tyres for a quick blast and he's just held off Hamilton for P10

Lap 35

Perez is behind Hamilton having stopped for a second time and he will run to the end. The question now is who will join the Red Bulls on the podium? Could be Perez at this rate - he doesn't need to stop again. He's racing Rosberg for that one

Lap 36

Webber's told his tyres will be OK to the end but not to go crazy - he's 13s behind Vettel. Raikkonen is very quickly catching Sutil for P3 as the tyres are going off on the Force India. Ricciardo looks to be on for good points here, but Sutil looks to be doing too many laps on the mediums in an attempt to one-stop

Lap 37

Raikkonen passes Sutil using DRS - he's done 30 laps on those mediums himself. Alonso pits and rejoins in 16th place. This is turning in to a good day for Mercedes in the constructors' championship

Lap 38

A bad day for Caterham as Pic retires - "We're investigating a serious issue on the car". That keeps Marussia ahead in the constructors' with just three rounds to go. Sutil is struggling but is told to push harder - those tyres must feel awful

Lap 39

Ricciardo pits for the final time and will have to fight back up in to the points. He's rejoined inm 14th place but is on fresher tyres. Vettel leads Webber by 13.5s while Rosberg is doing a good job of securing that final podium spot

Lap 40

It's not the final spot now - WEBBER IS OUT. He got the radio message "We are losing gearbox sync" and he's had to park the car on the left of Turn 2. Such a shame, but he was never winning this race without a problem for Vettel. Vettel is informed and says "I'm aware, I am aware". Could that problem hit him too?

Lap 41

Raikkonen gets the hammer down and is making time on the likes of Rosberg, Massa and Hamilton. Rosberg uses DRS to pass Sutil down the back straight though in response and sets the fastest lap of the race.

Lap 42

Vettel's lead is 25s over Raikkonen and 35 over Rosberg so he's able to nurse the car if required. Sutil pits for soft tyres - surely he can't take them to the end so that could be a struggle for points now. Webber's team radio tells him it was an alternator failure.

Lap 43

Rosberg sets the fastest lap - Vettel won't like that. Matthew emails in to say: "yawn yawn yawn i doubt anything will happen to vettels car"

Hamilton is right behind Massa but still unable to find a way past the Ferrari. Grosjean is lapping quickly ahead of them and ran the softs at the start too...

Lap 44

Grosjean is doing a great job actually. If he can keep that pace up he's on for points having started down in 17th place. Raikkonen heads Rosberg by 8s, Grosjean is 6s further back and 2.5 ahead of Massa/Hamilton

Lap 45

The stewards say no further action on the incident between Grosjean and Gutierrez. No word on the Hulkenberg one yet. Rosberg sets another fastest lap and looks strong for second place

Lap 46

Perez told if he keeps his current pace up then Raikkonen will rejoin behind him. Perez is P7 at the moment and within two seconds of Hamilton and Massa. Bottas defends from Ricciardo in to Turn 4 but they're outside the points

Lap 47

I'm afraid to say Force India has got Sutil's strategy wrong. 13 laps to go and Sutil is on the softs, so will have to switch to mediums because he's very slow. Alonso is at the back of that train in 14th place. Massa is told to wait five laps before attacking Grosjean

Lap 48

Vettel's lead is still 25s, while Rosberg is now under six seconds behind Raikkonen. Raikkonen is also told to save fuel and looks to be trying to one-stop. Grosjean could suddenly be in a race for the top three if he can keep the pace up. Gutierrez pits from P12 and that's his chance of points gone

Lap 49

I say that's his chance of points gone - We could see a number of late pit stops or wrong strategies! Ricciardo passes Bottas for P11 and Alonso follows him through. Sutil up next in P10 and di Resta is only 6s ahead of that fight in ninth

Lap 50

Another good lap from Rosberg pulls to within 4.3s of Raikkonen. Grosjean is 2.2s ahead of Massa but on a good lap here. Vettel's lead is 26s and he's told "you just need to keep it tidy".

Walter emails in to say: "Its great for Vettel that his car is so dominant so good for him, but its sad that the exciting part of races these days are about who is in 2nd and 3rd"

True, but we could have a really good fight for the podium in these final laps. Alonso attacks Ricciardo but can't get through.

Lap 51

Raikkonen's tyres are completely giving up the ghost and Rosberg is 1.8s behind him now. Grosjean sets his fastest lap of the race including the fastest middle sector of the whole grand prix, life in those tyres yet. Gutierrez then sets the fastest lap down in P16. Sutil in 10th to Button in 14th is 7s and any one of them will hope to snatch a point there

Lap 52

Vettel is told to "stop using the drinks bottle". Strange... Rosberg right behind Raikkonen and he's through in to Turn 4. Second place looks secure for Rosberg. Can Raikkonen hold on to third place? Looks unlikely from here.

Lap 53

Vettel's pace is still fine so whatever the reason for that message it doesn't seem to be hurting him other than his thirst! Grosjean is 7.8s behind Raikkonen for third place and gaining. Massa is 2.2s back, Hamilton within a second and Perez behind that battle too. Even Hulkenberg isn't that far back in 8th

Lap 54

Raikkonen immediately four seconds off the back of Rosberg and Grosjean is within six seconds of his team-mate. Hulkenberg pits for a set of softs from eighth place so that ruins his fun. That also promotes the Force Indias. Vettel going quickly and is told "Don't even think about it, some people have fitted softs and we have enough problems as it is". Regardless, he sets the fastest lap of the race!

Lap 55

Perez attacks Hamilton in to Turn 5 but can't get through. They've dropped behind Massa a bit now. Hulkenberg retires - such a shame for him as he was on for more strong points and could have seen Sauber close on Force India. Now it looks like a good day for Force India...

Lap 56

Strange driving from Raikkonen - he forces Grosjean off track at Turn 4 and there may have been contact. That's allowed Massa right on to the back of them. Lotus tells Raikkonen off for that one and he allows Grosjean. There could have been contact there.

Lap 57

Grosjean is now in P3 but Massa got through at the end of the lap too and is right behind him. Raikkonen's driving there could have cost Grosjean a podium. Hamilton and Perez are right behind Raikkonen now.

Lap 58

Vettel's 26s clear and Rosberg is 12s ahead of Grosjean. Three abreast on the back straight as Perez and Hamilton pass Raikkonen and Perez is through on both of them! Fifth place for Perez. He may struggle to catch Massa though

Lap 59

Grosjean doing brilliantly in third place as he pulls away from Massa and Raikkonen pits - that strategy didn't work for him. However, Grosjean told to short shift as much as he can... Raikkonen's stop was a free one as he's rejoined ahead of the two Force Indias which are in P8 and P9 with Ricciardo holding off Alonso for P10

Lap 60

We're on the final lap and Vettel is about to be crowned a very deserving four-time world champion. It's been another great performance...

SEBASTIAN VETTEL WINS THE INDIAN GRAND PRIX AND THE 2013 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP!

Rosberg crosses the line to finish second and Romain Grosjean takes a brilliant third place from 17th on the grid. Another podium for him. Massa is fourth, 2.1s ahead of Perez in fifth and Hamilton a long way back in sixth place. Seventh for Raikkonen, di Resta eighth, Sutil ninth and Ricciardo in tenth place having held off Alonso.

Vettel is congratulated on the radio and Horner tells him: "You join the greats". He has just done something great - taken his car on to the grid again and completed doughnuts in front of the big grandstand, then standing on the car and saluting the crowd.

This is brilliant stuff from Vettel. He's been dominant in India and is thanking the fans. He runs over to climb the fence in front of the grandstand and throws his gloves in to the crowd. That's a great moment.

The celebratory t-shirts and caps are all out at Red Bull already and Vettel looks genuinely overwhelmed as he chats to Adrian Newey after the race. A long delay before the podium ceremony for some reason.

Here they come out on to the podium and it's a great drive from Grosjean for third place. Rosberg joins him for the first time since Silverstone and it's Vettel he stands on the top step and looks to the skies. He looks a bit emotional...

Vettel lifts the trophy up in to the air after taking his sixth consecutive victory. Could he win all nine at the end of the year?! Adrian Newey gets the constructors' trophy and that's the championship too for Red Bull.

Vettel: "I would love to say thank you to the crowd, an unbelievable reception today. It's a shame we're not racing here next year. I'm speechless - I crossed the line and I was empty. A phenomenal season ... it's a pleasure for me to jump in the car, go out for the guys and give it all I have.

On his celebration in front of the grandstand: "It felt so right, usually we are not allowed to do it, I had to do it."

Rosberg: "The team did a fantastic strategy. Second place, I'm pleased with that ... giving Ferrari a run for their money in the constructors'"

Rosberg on Vettel: "He deserves to be world champion. We're going to try and make it very difficult for him next year"

Grosjean: "I didn't expect to be on the podium ... we went brave with the strategy as it wasn't the time to be safe."

Vettel: "I'm overwhelmed. It's one of the best days of my life so far. I always try to think back to where you started and Formula One was so far away. There are so many people I have to thank along the way up to now who have been teaching me a lot ... maybe in ten years when I try to understand what we have done I can grasp it better."

As the top three leave the podium, Vettel takes his champagne with him towards the press conference and looks in a bit of a daze. The Indian marshals below the podium chant "We love Formula One" as the atmosphere really kicks off.

It's time for us to sign off ourselves, but we'll have all the reaction from the teams, drivers and Vettel himself after he became just the fourth man in history to win four world championships. Not bad at 26, eh? Thanks for joining us. Bye for now.