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GP2 Barcelona: Red Bull junior Gasly on top for new team Prema

Prema began its maiden GP2 season by topping 2016's opening practice session at Barcelona, with its Red Bull protege Pierre Gasly edging out Williams Formula 1 development driver Alex Lynn

Last season's DAMS team-mates had an early battle for first place, with Lynn - still at the French team - fastest at first before Gasly beat him by four tenths of a second with a 1m29.519s for Prema.

Lynn improved moments later, but came through 0.104s adrift.

That was how they stayed, with teams quickly switching focus to longer runs on a weekend where managing tyre degradation will be a major focus.

Artem Markelov began 2016 strongly by taking third for Russian Time.

Final test pacesetter Racing Engineering secured fourth and sixth with Norman Nato and Jordan King.

They sandwiched Renault F1 test driver Sergey Sirotkin, whose team-mate at reigning champion squad ART Grand Prix, Honda protege Nobuharu Matsushita, was eighth.

European Formula 3 graduate Antonio Giovinazzi underlined Prema's form with seventh place, which made him the leading rookie.

Formula Renault 3.5 champion Oliver Rowland and former GP3 title contender Marvin Kirchhofer completed the top 10.

Kirchhofer was the sole Carlin entrant listed in the run-up to the season-opener, but GP2 veteran Sergio Canamasas completed a late deal to join him and bring the field up to 22.

Carlin becomes the sixth team of Canamasas's GP2 career. He was 19th fastest.

FREE PRACTICE RESULTS

Pos Driver Team Gap Laps
1 Pierre Gasly Prema Racing 1m29.519s 18
2 Alex Lynn DAMS 0.104s 20
3 Artem Markelov RUSSIAN TIME 0.341s 16
4 Norman Nato Racing Engineering 0.355s 18
5 Sergey Sirotkin ART Grand Prix 0.441s 19
6 Jordan King Racing Engineering 0.482s 18
7 Antonio Giovinazzi Prema Racing 0.538s 20
8 Nobuharu Matsushita ART Grand Prix 0.791s 19
9 Oliver Rowland MP Motorsport 0.826s 18
10 Marvin Kirchhofer Carlin 0.951s 16
11 Nicholas Latifi DAMS 1.023s 20
12 Luca Ghiotto Trident 1.037s 17
13 Raffaele Marciello RUSSIAN TIME 1.054s 16
14 Daniel de Jong MP Motorsport 1.143s 17
15 Mitch Evans Pertamina Campos Racing 1.201s 15
16 Arthur Pic Rapax 1.203s 19
17 Jimmy Eriksson Arden International 1.223s 17
18 Gustav Malja Rapax 1.304s 21
19 Sergio Canamasas Carlin 1.496s 17
20 Sean Gelael Pertamina Campos Racing 1.785s 15
21 Nabil Jeffri Arden International 2.058s 16
22 Philo Paz Armand Trident 3.284s 21

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