Belgian GP: Nico Rosberg leads Lewis Hamilton in first Spa practice
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg set the fastest time in the opening Formula 1 practice session for this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix
The German overcame early problems with his car to record the quickest lap ahead of his team-mate Lewis Hamilton by 0.242 seconds.
Daniel Ricciardo was third fastest in his Red Bull, ahead of the two Ferraris of Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel.
Sixth at the end of the 90 minute morning session, held in dry, sunny conditions, was Danill Kvyat in the second Red Bull - just 0.878s behind first-placed Rosberg - and ahead of the two Toro Rosso machines of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jr.
Sergio Perez was ninth in his Force India, while the two Williams of Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa ended practice one in 10th and 14th place respectively.
The session was red-flagged after 50 minutes when Pastor Maldonado spun exiting the right-hander at Turn 7.
He lost the rear of his Lotus at the right-hander coming out of Les Combes and crossed the circuit smashing the right-front off his car, thereby bringing the session to a halt for 10 minutes while the marshals repaired the tyre barriers.
He finished with the 11th-quickest time.
There was concern for world championship contender Rosberg at the beginning of the session, as he appeared to lose drive entering Blanchimont.
He retuned to the pits where his mechanics investigated the problem with the engine on his Mercedes and half an hour later he was back on track with the issues seemingly resolved.
Briton Jolyon Palmer was the only reserve driving running this morning and took over Romain Grosjean's Lotus seat for the opening session, recording the 17th fastest time.
The two McLaren-Hondas of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button finished down the order in 16th and 18th.
PRACTICE ONE TIMES:
| Pos | Driver | Car | Time | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 1m51.082s | - | 19 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 1m51.324s | 0.242s | 24 |
| 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull/Renault | 1m51.373s | 0.291s | 18 |
| 4 | Kimi Raikkonen | Ferrari | 1m51.478s | 0.396s | 23 |
| 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1m51.866s | 0.784s | 21 |
| 6 | Daniil Kvyat | Red Bull/Renault | 1m51.960s | 0.878s | 18 |
| 7 | Max Verstappen | Toro Rosso/Renault | 1m52.158s | 1.076s | 27 |
| 8 | Carlos Sainz Jr. | Toro Rosso/Renault | 1m52.421s | 1.339s | 26 |
| 9 | Sergio Perez | Force India/Mercedes | 1m52.423s | 1.341s | 20 |
| 10 | Valtteri Bottas | Williams/Mercedes | 1m52.511s | 1.429s | 19 |
| 11 | Pastor Maldonado | Lotus/Mercedes | 1m52.539s | 1.457s | 15 |
| 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | Force India/Mercedes | 1m52.614s | 1.532s | 20 |
| 13 | Felipe Nasr | Sauber/Ferrari | 1m52.640s | 1.558s | 16 |
| 14 | Felipe Massa | Williams/Mercedes | 1m52.653s | 1.571s | 22 |
| 15 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber/Ferrari | 1m53.426s | 2.344s | 16 |
| 16 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren/Honda | 1m53.502s | 2.420s | 15 |
| 17 | Jolyon Palmer | Lotus/Mercedes | 1m53.799s | 2.717s | 23 |
| 18 | Jenson Button | McLaren/Honda | 1m54.225s | 3.143s | 14 |
| 19 | Will Stevens | Marussia/Ferrari | 1m55.501s | 4.419s | 16 |
| 20 | Roberto Merhi | Marussia/Ferrari | 1m56.086s | 5.004s | 17 |
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