Japan – Free Practice 1: Rosberg ahead of Hamilton and Alonso, Verstappen finishes in smoke

It is under a timid sun that the 2014 Japanese Grand Prix weekend begins. Even before the session starts, a small twist: although announced as a participant for Marussia, Will Stevens will ultimately not be in the seat of the MR03. However, the team has announced that the Briton is joining the team as a reserve driver alongside Alexander Rossi.

At the same time, Max Verstappen will make his major debut in Formula 1 with Toro Rosso, replacing Jean-Eric Vergne. Roberto Merhi will be driving for Caterham, in place of Kamui Kobayashi.

**The session has started** and Daniel Ricciardo is the first on track. He is followed by Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas, and a few hundred meters further, Max Verstappen, who thus officially becomes the youngest driver to take part in an official F1 session at 17 years and 3 days old. During his installation lap, he complains about a third gear issue. Quickly, calm settles in and few drivers venture onto the Japanese track. One by one, Ricciardo, Merhi, and Bottas break the silence, signaling a wave of track activity after 15 minutes into this FP1.

The first time of the day is set by Merhi in 1:44.564, quickly beaten by seven seconds by Bottas. The Spaniard, on the next lap, makes a mistake in Spoon. The two Mercedes comfortably take the top two positions after their flying laps.

After 30 minutes, Rosberg is ahead of Hamilton, Bottas, Alonso, and Kvyat. Calm has returned, as the drivers must return the hard tire set provided by Pirelli for this first half-hour of practice. Two drivers have not set a time: Kevin Magnussen, who seems to be experiencing technical issues, and Max Chilton, who was evidently not ready to quickly get into the Marussia. A quarter of an hour passes before some cars eventually leave the pit lane, mostly for long stints. During this break, Alonso took the opportunity to distribute grapes to his mechanics in his garage: a sweet gesture!

After an hour, Rosberg, Hamilton, Alonso, Bottas, and Räikkönen make up the top 5. Not much to report, except for some minor errors made by the drivers in Degner, in particular. Several technical issues to note: in the Red Bull garage where there is a lot of activity around Vettel’s car and on the Marussia side where Bianchi has been out of his seat for a few moments. On the contrary, Magnussen and Hülkenberg have returned to the track.

Six minutes before the end of the session, Max Verstappen suffers a mechanical failure. His engine smokes, and he pulls off the track. The session ends with no driver completing fast laps, Rosberg leading Hamilton and Alonso.