Nico Rosberg topped the timing screens in his Mercedes on Formula 1’s return to the Red Bull Ring in Austria for the first time since 2003.
The German outpaced team-mate Lewis Hamilton by just over a tenth, whilst Fernando Alonso was third quickest and just a few tenths back for Ferrari.
Eight of the top nine cars are Mercedes powered, owing to the fact the circuit is a high-speed one which favours a strong package.
Red Bull struggled at their home race which even bears their name, with Daniel Ricciardo in 13th and Sebastian Vettel 15th, both over a second slower than Rosberg’s leading pace.
Vettel meanwhile had a scary moment as he exited the final corner but ran wide and span twice, narrowly avoiding the barrier.
He wasn’t the only one as several drivers were caught out at turn one and turn nine.
FP1 Full Times – 2014 Austrian Grand Prix:
# | Driver | Team | Time | Gap | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
01 | N. Rosberg | Mercedes | 1:11.295 | 19 | |
02 | L. Hamilton | Mercedes | 1:11.435 | 0.140 | 32 |
03 | F. Alonso | Ferrari | 1:11.606 | 0.311 | 23 |
04 | F. Massa | Williams | 1:11.756 | 0.461 | 27 |
05 | J. Button | McLaren | 1:11.839 | 0.544 | 33 |
06 | S. Perez | Force India | 1:12.009 | 0.714 | 33 |
07 | N. Hulkenberg | Force India | 1:12.072 | 0.777 | 20 |
08 | V. Bottas | Williams | 1:12.114 | 0.819 | 21 |
09 | K. Magnussen | McLaren | 1:12.313 | 1.018 | 36 |
10 | J. Vergne | Toro Rosso | 1:12.364 | 1.069 | 30 |
11 | K. Raikkonen | Ferrari | 1:12.365 | 1.070 | 21 |
12 | D. Kvyat | Toro Rosso | 1:12.372 | 1.077 | 35 |
13 | D. Ricciardo | Red Bull | 1:12.570 | 1.275 | 28 |
14 | E. Gutierrez | Sauber | 1:12.984 | 1.689 | 29 |
15 | S. Vettel | Red Bull | 1:12.988 | 1.693 | 25 |
16 | R. Grosjean | Lotus | 1:13.168 | 1.873 | 28 |
17 | P. Maldonado | Lotus | 1:13.642 | 2.347 | 27 |
18 | J. Binachi | Marussia | 1:13.738 | 2.443 | 26 |
19 | M. Chilton | Marussia | 1:13.857 | 2.562 | 28 |
20 | K. Kobayashi | Caterham | 1:14.611 | 3.316 | 24 |
21 | A. Sutil | Sauber | 1:14.691 | 3.396 | 9 |
22 | M. Ericsson | Caterham | 1:17.501 | 6.206 | 8 |