Red Bull Racing has dominated the first practice session of the 2011 Formula One season.
Australian hero Mark Webber ended Practice 1 on top – setting a best of 1:26.8s after the chequered flag fell.
The lap edged team-mate Sebastian Vettel from the top spot by 0.3s, while Fernando Alonso, Nico Rosberg and Rubens Barrichello rounded out the top five.
Webber’s time was almost a second faster than Alonso’s best, with the Red Bull proving superior to the Ferrari in the final sector alone by 0.6s.
McLaren duo Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton were sixth and seventh respectively – with Button completing a session-high 29 laps.
Michael Schumacher, Kamui Kobayashi and Vitaly Petrov rounded out the top 10.
Australian World Series by Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo completed 23 laps in the Toro Rosso, ending the session 16th fastest.
The 90 minute session began with a bang, as Team Lotus test driver Karun Chandhok crashed into the Turn 3 exit wall on his out-lap.
HRT’s new F111 has yet to turn a lap, with neither Narain Karthikeyan nor Tonio Liuzzi venturing onto the circuit during the session.
Timo Glock lost time during the session with a gearbox issue. Both Virgin Racing entries were outside the 107% qualifying cut-off by the end of the session.
See below for the full practice result
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap |
| 1 | Mark Webber | RBR-Renault | 1:26.831 | |
| 2 | Sebastian Vettel | RBR-Renault | 1:27.158 | 0.327 |
| 3 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1:27.749 | 0.918 |
| 4 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 1:28.152 | 1.321 |
| 5 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams-Cosworth | 1:28.430 | 1.599 |
| 6 | Jenson Button | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:28.440 | 1.609 |
| 7 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:28.483 | 1.652 |
| 8 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 1:28.690 | 1.859 |
| 9 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:28.725 | 1.894 |
| 10 | Vitaly Petrov | Renault | 1:28.765 | 1.934 |
| 11 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1:28.842 | 2.011 |
| 12 | Nick Heidfeld | Renault | 1:28.928 | 2.097 |
| 13 | Adrian Sutil | Force India-Mercedes | 1:29.314 | 2.483 |
| 14 | Sebastien Buemi | STR-Ferrari | 1:29.328 | 2.497 |
| 15 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams-Cosworth | 1:29.403 | 2.572 |
| 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | STR-Ferrari | 1:29.468 | 2.637 |
| 17 | Sergio Perez | Sauber-Ferrari | 1:29.643 | 2.812 |
| 18 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India-Mercedes | 1:31.002 | 4.171 |
| 19 | Heikki Kovalainen | Lotus-Renault | 1:32.428 | 5.597 |
| 20 | Jerome d’Ambrosio | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:35.282 | 8.451 |
| 21 | Timo Glock | Virgin-Cosworth | 1:35.289 | 8.458 |
| 22 | Karun Chandhok | Lotus-Renault | ||
| 23 | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT-Cosworth | ||
| 24 | Vitantonio Liuzzi | HRT-Cosworth |
For a comprehensive preview of the opening round of the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship, CLICK HERE for Speedcafe.com’s Race Guide.
