Free 1: Pastor Maldonado shines in opening practice

Pastor Maldonado has ended the opening practice session for this weekends European Grand Prix fastest, as the Venezuelan driver strives to return to his competitive ways after failing to score a single World Championship point since his victory at Barcelona. The Williams driver finished just ahead of the Red Bull duo, with Vettel just pipping Webber for 2nd.

The session began in slightly overcast and breezy conditions at the Valencia Street Circuit, contrary the usual glorious sunshine that usually shines upon the tight and twisty 25-turn circuit. Several reserve drivers returned for the opening practice session, as Jules Bianchi (Force India) and Valtteri Bottas (Williams) replaced their respective team-mates.

Kamui Kobayashi was the first driver to take to the track as the session got underway, with the majority of the field completing their installation laps early on. It was quite a while before the first timed lap of the day was set, however eventually the Toro Rosso of Jean-Eric Vergne became the first driver to do so with a 01:45.619. The Frenchman was able to bring that time down to a 01:42.944, as his team-mate Daniel Ricciardo also completed his first timed laps of the session.

Whilst Vergne and Ricciardo circulated the track, Perez and Webber remained in their respective garages with minor issues quickly being resolved on their cars. Sergio Perez’s Sauber had an electrical issue on his car, whereas Mark Webber had a slight DRS/hydraulic issue on his. Both issues were quickly rectified, enabling the two drivers to eventually take to the track.

As the session wore on the times inevitably began to tumble, as Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean and then Nico Rosberg brought the time down to a 01:41.182. Spanish Grand Prix winner Pastor Maldonado then shot to the top, with a 01:40.890 which remained unbeaten as the session entered its closing stages.

After suffering a highly uncompetitive Canadian Grand Prix, McLaren are hopeful they have resolved the minor issues that resulted in Jenson Button’s lack of pace. However, the 2009 World Champion continued to visibly struggle as the session progressed, locking his brakes extensively throughout the morning session. This led to further complaints on the team radio, as the Briton eventually ended the opening session of the weekend 4th overall.

With the drivers using the first practice session to get to grips with the tricky Valencia Street Circuit, many minor mistakes were made throughout the 90 minute session. Although many drivers ran wide at various points on the track, the session was able to run incident free. The teams and drivers will return to the Valencia Street Circuit later in the day for the second free practice session of the weekend.

Follow me on Twitter - @AndyYoungF1