Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso set the fastest time in a rain-soaked first practice session for the Turkish Grand Prix, clocking a time 1.4 seconds clear of the two Mercedes in second and third.
The track was wet throughout the session but conditions allowed drivers to attempt laps on both the full-wet and intermediate tyres, the latter of which Alonso used to set the fastest time. Opting for intermediates had inherent risks however, as Sebastian Vettel found out when he lost control of his car on the exit of the infamous turn eight and crashed into the barriers.
Coming into the final section of the corner the rear of Vettel’s Red Bull twitched slightly and it was enough to force him onto the artificial grass on the outside of the track, which in turn spun him back across the circuit and into the Armco barrier.
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F1 Standings Ahead of Turkish Grand Prix
Formula 1: Turkish Grand Prix - First Practice Results
The right-hand side of the car was demolished along with the front wing and the accident brought out the red flags, stopping the session. Vettel was completely uninjured but the car will require Red Bull’s full attention to get it track-worthy for the afternoon session. ESPN F1
It was Rosberg who got closest to Alonso’s 1m 38.670s with 1m 40.072s, but a purple first sector and a green second were negated when the German lost time in the third right at the end. Schumacher had two lurid spins in Turn 11, the second when his MGP W02 swapped ends very quickly, serving to demonstrate just how tricky conditions were in Istanbul Park. The former champion ended up third, with 1m 40.132s.
Behind them, Nick Heidfeld and Vitaly Petrov got Renault’s weekend off to a reasonable start, with 1m 40.338s and 1m 40.401 respectively, with Kamui Kobayashi within striking distance for Sauber on 1m 40.421s and Felipe Massa seventh in the second Ferrari on 1m 40.697s.
Daniel Ricciardo continued his smooth progress at Toro Rosso with eighth fastest time of 1m 41.094s, from team mate and early pacesetter Sebastien Buemi who lapped in 1m 41.178s. Then came Nico Hulkenberg in the lead Force India with 1m 41.347s, Mark Webber in the lead Red Bull on 1m 41.564s, and Pastor Maldonado in the lead Williams on 1m 42.597s.
McLaren never planned to hurt their rubber, so Button set the 23rd-fastest time with a lap of 2m 00.666s, whilst Lewis Hamilton didn’t record a time at all. Formula 1
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