Francisco Camps, the president of the local region around Valencia, has asked F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone to adopt the status of official mourning for the inaugural grand prix on the eastern port city's streets this weekend. The Spanish government on Thursday declared three days of nationwide mourning following the Spanair plane crash in Madrid.

It is believed that a period of silence will take place at the urban circuit at noon on Friday.

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Nick Heidfeld is maintaining a code of silence regarding his future at BMW-Sauber beyond the 2008 season. When asked at Valencia what he had to say about his contractual situation for next year, the 31-year-old German answered: "Nothing that I can tell you (reporters)."

Source: GMM