Mercedes duo hold early edge at Australian Grand Prix

Defending champion Vettel shakes off poor preseason to post fourth-best lap

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton of Britain touches the wheel of his car after it broke down during the first practice session of the Australian Grand Prix at the Albert Park circuit in Melbourne on March 14, 2014. Jason Reed / ReutersShow less

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg set the pace in practice for the Australian Grand Prix on Friday as Mercedes appeared to be the team to beat in Formula One’s season-opening race.

With teams adapting to several technical changes, Hamilton overcame mechanical problems in the first session to record the fastest lap in the afternoon session, ahead of his teammate.

Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso was third-fastest and the four-time defending world champion Sebastian Vettel, who endured several problems in preseason testing, was an encouraging fourth.

“We got a nice foundation for the weekend in the second session today, so hopefully we can build on that and then see where we are in qualifying,” said Hamilton, the 2008 world champion.

“While it was disappointing to not get any track time this morning, we got up to pace quite quickly and found the balance relatively fast. I feel comfortable in the car, so overall it’s a positive start.”

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The sessions were closely watched as the revamped cars, with new, quieter turbo-charged engines and energy-recovery systems, took to the Melbourne circuit for the first time.

Hamilton and Rosberg have been tipped to fight it out in Sunday's race, given Mercedes's superior preseason testing and adjustment to the technical changes, which also include a fuel limit.

Hamilton put in a scorching lap on soft tyres to post a best time of 1 minute, 29.625 seconds, 0.157 seconds ahead of German Rosberg (1:29.782).

The Mercedes duo were the only drivers to go below 1:30, demonstrating an early edge.

Vettel was pleased to be “closer to the top rather than somewhere lost in the back”. He said: “In terms of speed we know there is a lot more to come, but so far it feels very good.”

Earlier, Hamilton had an inauspicious start to his 2014 season when his Mercedes stopped on its first lap of the first practice session, with smoke coming from the rear of the car. The Briton got out and the car was towed back to the team garage, in a setback for the Mercedes team.

Hamilton, one of the sport’s best-known drivers, also had the indignity of having his pass checked by security as he returned to the paddock still wearing his race helmet.

Mercedes reported that an oil pressure alarm had led to a precautionary shutdown in his car and Hamilton showed no problems in the second session.

McLaren’s former world champion Jenson Button had a promising day, finishing high in both practice sessions and clocking the fifth-best time of 1:30.510 in the second run.

Vettel’s new Australian teammate Dan Ricciardo got in plenty of laps, 38, in the second Red Bull car and stood sixth.

Alonso’s new teammate, Kimi Raikkonen, was seventh, ahead of Finland’s Valtteri Bottas in a Williams and the Danish rookie Kevin Magnussen, driving a McLaren.

Japan’s Kamui Kobayashi in a Caterham missed the second session after experiencing problems in the first session, which meant his whole day was wiped out.

Pastor Maldonado also sat out the second session after problems with his Lotus, while Caterham’s Marcus Ericsson completed only one lap in the second practice.

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