Rubens Barrichello set the fastest time in the opening practice session for Sunday’s European Grand Prix.
As Brawn look to recover from their mid-season slump, Barrichello topped the timesheets around the dusty Valencia street circuit, despite complaining of a number of issues regarding brakes.
Heikki Kovalainen, who remains under pressure at Mclaren, has set himself up for a potentially-strong weekend, with the second fastest time – less than a tenth faster than his team-mate, Lewis Hamilton.
New boys, Roman Grosjean and Luca Badoer, enjoyed a trouble free debut in Formula One, despite Badoer setting considerably slower times in comparison to his rivals.
Both drivers will hope to use Friday’s sessions to familiarise themselves with the track.
Pos Driver Team Time Laps 1. Barrichello Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:42.460 19 2. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:42.636 +0.176 16 3. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1:42.654 +0.194 18 4. Button Brawn GP-Mercedes (B) 1:43.074 +0.614 19 5. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:43.088 +0.628 17 6. Sutil Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:43.209 +0.749 13 7. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) 1:43.225 +0.765 25 8. Webber Red Bull-Renault (B) 1:43.243 +0.783 19 9. Alonso Renault (B) 1:43.345 +0.885 18 10. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) 1:43.384 +0.924 23 11. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:43.389 +0.929 30 12. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) 1:43.419 +0.959 20 13. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari (B) 1:43.637 +1.177 30 14. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) 1:43.746 +1.286 22 15. Heidfeld BMW Sauber (B) 1:44.040 +1.580 23 16. Fisichella Force India-Mercedes (B) 1:44.126 +1.666 17 17. Grosjean Renault (B) 1:44.356 +1.896 23 18. Trulli Toyota (B) 1:44.638 +2.178 26 19. Glock Toyota (B) 1:44.732 +2.272 28 20. Badoer Ferrari (B) 1:45.840 +3.380 25
