Following an accident in this morning's practice session in which his car was badly damaged, Mark Webber will not take part in this afternoon's qualifying session.

The Australian lost control of his car at the notorious Degner curve and went backwards into the tyre barriers. Due to the extent of the damage, and the new rules which mean there is no T-car, the Australian will have to use a new chassis for tomorrow's race, which he will start from the pitlane.

"You think of the preparation that goes into a weekend like this," said Webber, "so to not have the opportunity to do the race from a decent grid position is very tough for all of us - especially the guys in the garage.

"It wasn't a big crash by any means," he continued, "but it did too much damage to the chassis, so we have to change it. We don't have spare cars these days, so that's the outcome and it's a shame. We made a few changes to the car for the final run and I lost control when it bottomed-out through Turn 8."

"Mark was on a really quick lap towards the end of P3, he'd just set his fastest first sector," added team boss Christian Horner. "It was a really unfortunate incident, which is quite costly. It means we have to make a chassis change this afternoon, so he won't be able to take part in qualifying. We'll have to re-scrutineer the new chassis in the morning (Sunday), which will necessitate him starting the race from the pit lane. So, not a good start to the weekend."