Sebastian Vettel continued his run of good form, taking the quickest time in first free practice, a 1:38.739, over six tenths quicker than his team-mate.
Mark Webber was second with the two McLaren’s behind, although both Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button were over two seconds off the top time.
A KERS issue curbed Button’s running, with his engineer reporting overheating issues with the system – an issue they’ll need to resolve if they are to challenge Red Bull.
Nick Heidfeld again proved Renault have the pace, finishing just four hundredths behind Button. He may have been able to better his time, but an error at turn ten saw the Renault sailing off-track with damage to the front of the car.
Other notable moments during practice included a shunt for Luiz Razia in Jarno Trulli’s T128 after coming together with a tyre wall.
Force India’s Paul di Resta had a spin, but recovered it well to be able to return to the pits on his own steam, unlike Pastor Maldonado who beached his Williams on a kerb.
Vitantonio Liuzzi stopped on-track in his HRT just as the session ended.
Chinese GP Free Practice 1 Results:
| Pos | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01. | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 1:38.739 | 23 | |
| 02. | M. Webber | Red Bull | 1:39.354 | +0.615 | 27 |
| 03. | L. Hamilton | McLaren | 1:40.845 | +2.106 | 21 |
| 04. | J. Button | McLaren | 1:40.940 | +2.201 | 22 |
| 05. | N. Heidfeld | Renault | 1:40.987 | +2.248 | 5 |
| 06. | F. Massa | Ferrari | 1:41.046 | +2.307 | 25 |
| 07. | S. Perez | Sauber | 1:41.189 | +2.450 | 20 |
| 08. | P. Maldonado | Williams | 1:41.222 | +2.483 | 20 |
| 09. | V. Petrov | Renault | 1:41.231 | +2.492 | 16 |
| 10. | S. Buemi | Toro Rosso | 1:41.328 | +2.589 | 21 |
| 11. | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:41.361 | +2.622 | 23 |
| 12. | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 1:41.434 | +2.695 | 15 |
| 13. | N. Hulkenberg | Force India | 1.41.494 | +2.755 | 20 |
| 14. | H. Kovalainen | Team Lotus | 1:41.579 | +2.840 | 13 |
| 15. | P. di Resta | Force India | 1:41.610 | +2.871 | 18 |
| 16. | D. Ricciardo | Toro Rosso | 1:41.752 | +3.013 | 20 |
| 17. | R. Barrichello | Williams | 1:41.939 | +3.200 | 25 |
| 18. | M. Schumacher | Mercedes | 1:42.301 | +3.562 | 23 |
| 19. | K. Kobayashi | Sauber | 1:43.792 | +5.053 | 20 |
| 20. | J. d’Ambrosio | Virgin | 1.44.089 | +5.350 | 20 |
| 21. | V. Liuzzi | Hispania | 1:44.359 | +5.620 | 18 |
| 22. | T. Glock | Virgin | 1:44.438 | +5.699 | 11 |
| 23. | L. Razia | Team Lotus | 1:44.542 | +5.803 | 9 |
| 24. | N. Karthikeyan | Hispania | 1:45.019 | +6.280 | 23 |
