2018 F1 Spanish GP FP1 — Bottas leads as Kubica stands in

Formula 1 arrived at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 11 May 2018 to begin the Spanish Grand Prix weekend. Combining high-speed corners, long straights and slower technical sections, Barcelona is a circuit where teams traditionally evaluate upgrades. First practice therefore offered both a chance to familiarise themselves with the track and an initial assessment of the first new components of the European season.

Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas set the fastest lap with a 1:18.148, with team-mate Lewis Hamilton second, 0.849 seconds behind. Sebastian Vettel was third, while Max Verstappen and Kimi Räikkönen completed the top five. All three leading teams focused on their new aerodynamic packages.

Williams put reserve driver Robert Kubica in the car for first practice, with Sergey Sirotkin giving up his seat. Kubica completed 24 laps and finished 19th. His appearance was primarily aimed at gathering data on the car and its upgrades. It offered limited scope for a strict comparison of single-lap pace with the race drivers.

Fernando Alonso was sixth, Daniel Ricciardo seventh and Haas driver Romain Grosjean eighth. The midfield was closely matched. With Barcelona placing heavy demands on chassis balance and tyre temperatures, the opening session’s order was still influenced by different tyre tests and fuel loads.

Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly was tenth and Brendon Hartley 18th. Charles Leclerc was 12th, while the two Force Indias were 13th and 16th. Following brief installation laps, teams gradually moved on to baseline laps and long runs. This result also provided the team with an important reference for subsequent set-up work and its strategy for the weekend.

Bottas completed 32 laps, one of the highest totals in the field, while Sergio Pérez ran 36. By contrast, Räikkönen completed only 19 and Ricciardo 11. Some teams’ programmes differed because of traffic and the need to adjust their cars. This result also provided the team with an important reference for subsequent set-up work and its strategy for the weekend.

FP1 produced no major accident that changed the outlook for the weekend, but several teams still had to check their brakes, floors and upgrades. Barcelona offers extensive testing data, and the challenge on the opening day was to distinguish that existing data from the conditions on the new track surface. This result also provided the team with an important reference for subsequent set-up work and its strategy for the weekend.

Formula 1’s official results show Bottas leading with a 1:18.148, 0.849 seconds ahead of Hamilton, with Vettel third. The table below lists the positions, gaps to the leader and completed laps for all 20 drivers. Kubica’s 19th-place entry records his appearance in place of Sirotkin in this practice session.