The Japanese Grand Prix weekend got underway this morning at Suzuka circuit. At the end of the first practice session for the fifteenth round of the championship, the McLaren duo topped the time sheet with Jenson Button fastest in 1.33.634, followed by Lewis Hamilton (1.33.725.)
Third fastest was Sebastian Vettel who did a 1.34.090 in the Red Bull. Fernando Alonso was the fastest of the two Ferraris, setting the fourth quickest time of 1.34.373, completing 24 laps.
Felipe Massa did a 1.35.585, running 27 laps on his way to seventh fastest time. As usual on a Friday, Ferrari spent the session evaluating various aero configurations, running the specification last used at Spa-Francorchamps on Alonso’s car.
Vettel ended his session in the barriers at Degner after he ran wide on his final attempt.
The second session gets underway at 14h00 (6 am in the UK).
Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
01 | Jenson Button | McLaren Mercedes | 1.33.634 | 20 | |
02 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren Mercedes | 1.33.725 | +0.091 | 18 |
03 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull Renault | 1.34.090 | +0.456 | 22 |
04 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 1.34.372 | +0.738 | 24 |
05 | Mark Webber | Red Bull Renault | 1.34.426 | +0.792 | 25 |
06 | Jaime Alguersuari | Toro Rosso Ferrari | 1.34.937 | +1.303 | 23 |
07 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 1.35.585 | +1.951 | 27 |
08 | Sébastien Buemi | Toro Rosso Ferrari | 1.35.590 | +1.956 | 25 |
09 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes GP | 1.36.033 | +2.399 | 22 |
10 | Vitaly Petrov | Lotus Renault GP | 1.36.370 | +2.736 | 18 |
11 | Bruno Senna | Lotus Renault GP | 1.36.487 | +2.853 | 18 |
12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India Mercedes | 1.36.700 | +3.066 | 21 |
13 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber Ferrari | 1.36.948 | +3.314 | 24 |
14 | Paul di Resta | Force India Mercedes | 1.36.949 | +3.315 | 22 |
15 | Sergio Perez | Sauber Ferrari | 1.37.103 | +3.469 | 29 |
16 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes GP | 1.38.197 | +4.563 | 18 |
17 | Rubens Barrichello | Williams Cosworth | 1.38.331 | +4.697 | 11 |
18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams Cosworth | 1.38.446 | +4.812 | 8 |
19 | Jarno Trulli | Team Lotus Renault | 1.39.168 | +5.534 | 10 |
20 | Karun Chandhok | Team Lotus Renault | 1.39.946 | +6.312 | 22 |
21 | Timo Glock | Marussia Virgin Racing Cosworth | 1.40.872 | +7.238 | 13 |
22 | Jérôme d’Ambrosio | Marussia Virgin Racing Cosworth | 1.41.019 | +7.385 | 24 |
23 | Daniel Ricciardo | HRT F1 Cosworth | 1.41.106 | +7.472 | 25 |
24 | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT F1 Cosworth | 1.41.775 | +8.141 | 25 |