Ricciardo streets field in Monaco practice

Daniel Ricciardo proved Red Bull’s Monaco credentials by storming to the fastest time on the opening day of practice.

Debuting Renault’s latest engine, the Australian recorded a best lap of 1:14.61s around the tight street circuit.

The time was a full 0.6s clear of second placed man Lewis Hamilton, whose Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg was a further 0.3s adrift in third.

Max Verstappen was the only other driver to lap within a second of Ricciardo, while Toro Rosso pair Daniil Kvyat and Carlos Sainz impressed with fifth and sixth respectively.

The times left Ricciardo highly optimistic for qualifying, which looms as a showdown between Red Bull and Mercedes.

“The engine is a little bit (of performance), but obviously we’ve got a good car around here as well,” he said.

“Let’s see how we go in qualifying, but today I’m happy.

“This track is certainly one where you can find a little bit more if you’re willing to push it on the limit.

“I’ve always enjoyed it around here and I felt comfortable this afternoon with the balance.

“If the track doesn’t change much I don’t think we’ll be changing much with the car.”

It was a tough day for Ferrari, whose drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel ended up seventh and ninth respectively.

Vettel’s afternoon included a spin into the barriers at Mirabeau, which required a trip to the garage for a new rear wing.

The day’s opening session was topped by Hamilton and included two sizeable incidents.

Felipe Massa stuck his Williams into the barriers at Ste. Devote, while Jolyon Palmer suffered heavy contact with the wall at Tabac.

Palmer’s fellow rookie Ryo Haryanto joined in during the second session, clouting the fence at the exit of the tunnel.

All three drivers walked away unscathed.

Jenson Button was meanwhile lucky to escape a bizarre incident in the first session that saw a loose drain cover break his McLaren’s front wing.

As is tradition in Monaco, teams will have a full day to prepare ahead of Saturday’s final practice and qualifying.

Result: Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix Practice 1

Position	Driver	Car	Time	Gap	Laps
1	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:15.537s		31
2	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:15.638s	+0.101s	39
3	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:15.956s	+0.419s	26
4	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull/Renault	1:16.308s	+0.771s	29
5	Max Verstappen	Red Bull/Renault	1:16.371s	+0.834s	30
6	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso/Ferrari	1:16.426s	+0.889s	37
7	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India/Mercedes	1:16.560s	+1.023s	34
8	Sergio Perez	Force India/Mercedes	1:16.697s	+1.160s	28
9	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	1:16.912s	+1.375s	24
10	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso/Ferrari	1:17.130s	+1.593s	39
11	Valtteri Bottas	Williams/Mercedes	1:17.562s	+2.025s	44
12	Romain Grosjean	Haas/Ferrari	1:17.599s	+2.062s	33
13	Fernando Alonso	McLaren/Honda	1:17.838s	+2.301s	27
14	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas/Ferrari	1:17.909s	+2.372s	25
15	Jenson Button	McLaren/Honda	1:17.920s	+2.383s	26
16	Felipe Nasr	Sauber/Ferrari	1:18.187s	+2.650s	29
17	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	1:18.274s	+2.737s	34
18	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber/Ferrari	1:18.301s	+2.764s	33
19	Felipe Massa	Williams/Mercedes	1:18.746s	+3.209s	10
20	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	1:18.871s	+3.334s	22
21	Rio Haryanto	Manor/Mercedes	1:20.528s	+4.991s	28
22	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor/Mercedes	1:20.868s	+5.331s	25

Result: Formula 1 Monaco Grand Prix Practice 2

Position	Driver	Car	Time	Gap	Laps
1	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull/Renault	1:14.607s		40
2	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:15.213s	+0.606s	36
3	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:15.506s	+0.899s	48
4	Max Verstappen	Red Bull/Renault	1:15.571s	+0.964s	42
5	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso/Ferrari	1:15.815s	+1.208s	53
6	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso/Ferrari	1:15.981s	+1.374s	54
7	Kimi Raikkonen	Ferrari	1:16.040s	+1.433s	38
8	Sergio Perez	Force India/Mercedes	1:16.120s	+1.513s	48
9	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:16.269s	+1.662s	40
10	Jenson Button	McLaren/Honda	1:16.325s	+1.718s	46
11	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India/Mercedes	1:16.487s	+1.880s	49
12	Fernando Alonso	McLaren/Honda	1:16.723s	+2.116s	43
13	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas/Ferrari	1:16.782s	+2.175s	40
14	Valtteri Bottas	Williams/Mercedes	1:16.849s	+2.242s	47
15	Romain Grosjean	Haas/Ferrari	1:16.874s	+2.267s	23
16	Felipe Massa	Williams/Mercedes	1:17.286s	+2.679s	42
17	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	1:17.530s	+2.923s	29
18	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber/Ferrari	1:17.562s	+2.955s	39
19	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	1:17.761s	+3.154s	24
20	Felipe Nasr	Sauber/Ferrari	1:17.999s	+3.392s	49
21	Rio Haryanto	Manor/Mercedes	1:18.647s	+4.040s	10
22	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor/Mercedes	1:18.814s	+4.207s	46