Spanish GP Free Practice 1 - Button on top

The dust has settled following the lie gate saga and Formula One is now making the headlines off track as the sport's governing body looks to impose optional budget caps for the 2010 season with a raft of regulation changes to encourage teams to sign up to the agreement. While the Formula One Teams Association seeks urgent meeting with the FIA to discuss the matter, practice for the Spanish Grand Prix got underway this morning at Circuit de Catalunya.

It was a case of routine running for many of the 20 drivers as most evaluated both the softer option tyre and the harder prime rubber from Bridgestone. Championship leader Jenson Button vaulted to the top of the timesheets as the chequered flag flew at the end of the 90-minute session as the British racer opted to run the option tyre for his final run.

Button ended the session with a best time of 1:21.799s, three-tenths clear of Jarno Trulli. The Toyota driver topped the timesheets for much of the session opting unusually to focus much of his session on the softer option tyre and then using a set of the harder prime to record the second fastest time late in the session.

After the criticism the Toyota team received following their tyre strategy error last time out in Bahrain, it seems the team are going aggressive this weekend at Circuit de Catalunya.

BMW Sauber has a raft of changes to the F1.09 package this weekend. Robert Kubica and Nick Heidfeld struggled early in the session but made gains late with the option tyre to move third and fourth fastest. Heidfeld in particular had a troubled start to the morning as it seemed his F1.09 suffered some kind or rear brake issue which left him in the pits for a good hour of the session.

Kazuki Nakajima traditionally runs well at this Spanish venue having out-qualified Williams Toyota team-mate Nico Rosberg at the same venue last year.
Today Nakajima and Rosberg recorded the fifth and sixth fastest times, just under nine-tenths off the ultimate pace.

Nelson Piquet made late gains in his Renault as the Brazilian ended the morning seventh fastest. Local fan favourite Fernando Alonso was just 17th in the sister R29.

Timo Glock was eighth best in the second Toyota and unlike team-mate Trulli opted to remain on the option tyre throughout the session. Felipe Massa was next up in the modified Ferrari which seemed to still be running the single diffuser and not the new doubled decker design. Rubens Barrichello rounded out the top ten in the second Brawn Mercedes ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari.

Both Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel pushed hard for Red Bull Renault with both having a few off track excursions in the process. The duo were 12th and 13th fastest and 1.1 seconds off the pace of Button.

McLaren are pushing hard in the development race as witnessed this morning as a large brown box of components arrived as Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen were circulating on track. Hamilton was 14th fastest in his MP4-24 while Kovalainen's machine suffered a hydraulic problem leaving him down in 19th position.

Sebastien Bourdais led the Toro Rosso challenge in 15th ahead of Giancarlo Fisichella in his Force India Mercedes, Alonso, Sebastien Buemi, Kovalainen and Adrian Sutil in the second VJM002.