Lewis Hamilton topped the first practice session of the 2018 Formula 1 season, setting a best lap time of 1:25.026. The Briton had a trouble-free session, leading the pack by just under half a second.

Hamilton's teammate Valtteri Bottas ended up in second place, ahead of the Red Bull of Max Verstappen. The Dutchman's fastest time was seven-tenths of a second down on session leader Hamilton's. Behind Verstappen was the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen.

Raikkonen's teammate Sebastian Vettel was fifth, heading the second Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo. Early indications from practice suggest that the top three teams are indeed far ahead of the rest of the pack once again, with Romain Grosjean finishing the session in seventh, seven-tenths down on Ricciardo.

Fernando Alonso was next on the timesheets, but it wasn't a smooth morning for the Spaniard. An exhaust issue meant that the double-world champion didn't set a lap time until there were just twenty minutes left in the session.

Carlos Sainz, who enters his first full season with the Renault team, was ninth, followed by the second McLaren of Stoffel Vandoorne, who rounded out the top ten.

Pierre Gasly in the Toro Rosso was displaced by Vandoorne in the dying moments of the session and ended up in eleventh.  The Red Bull junior team start the year equipped with a Honda engine, which has provided them with a steady 2018 so far. 

Debutant Sergey Sirotkin was twelfth, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg and Esteban Ocon. While it was believed that Force India would change its name for the season ahead, the team has since confirmed that no such deal will happen.

The second Force India car of Sergio Perez was sixteenth, with Lance Stroll sandwiched in between the two Pink Panthers. Kevin Magnussen had a minor off at the penultimate corner but got away without any trouble and ended up in seventeenth.

Brendon Hartley was eighteenth, ahead of the Sauber duo. The Swiss team enter 2018 in partnership with Alfa Romeo, who is its title sponsor for the year. Marcus Ericsson, who commences his fourth year with the team, led teammate Charles Leclerc, who begins his F1 career this weekend. 

Fergal Walsh