Formula 1: Jenson Button sets the pace as McLaren post early marker

Button set the best time in opening practice, just ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, and an afternoon downpour meant the second-session times were a couple of seconds off those set earlier.

In the second practice session, Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher was fastest, a tenth of a second ahead of Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg.

Rain also affected the opening session, and dry-tyre running was only possible in the final half hour. Button’s best time of 1 minute, 27.560 seconds was four seconds off Sebastian Vettel’s pole time in 2011.

“Even though it doesn’t mean too much, it’s always nice to start the season with the quickest time of the day,” Button said.

The opening session should prove a better guide to how teams will perform in today’s qualifying session.

“Our car feels there or thereabouts but, as in testing, we don’t know the fuel-loads the others were running: it still looks close between ourselves, Red Bull and Mercedes,” Hamilton said. “It’s going to be interesting tomorrow – we’ll get a better understanding of who’s going to be quick.”

Button was a quarter of a second ahead of Hamilton, and there was a gap of four-tenths of a second back to Schumacher, followed by Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, local hope Mark Webber of Red Bull and Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg. The top ten was rounded out by another Australian in Toro Rosso’s Daniel Ricciardo, Williams’ Pastor Maldonado, Lotus’ Kimi Raikkonen and Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi.

World champion Vettel was off the pace in both sessions, finishing 11th in the opening session and tenth in the second.

“The little time we had in the car this afternoon was okay, but now we have to find the balance and learn a bit more about the car,” Vettel said. “The important thing now is to make a step overnight and go from there.”

On the slim evidence of one day of practice, it appeared McLaren, Mercedes, and perhaps other teams, have closed the gap on Red Bull, which was so dominant last season when Vettel recorded a record number of pole positions and coasted to the title.

Webber, who is competing in his 11th home grand prix and still looking for his first victory, acknowledged “we still have some work to do.”

Seven-time world champion Schumacher, who is yet to earn a podium finish since his comeback to the sport, had reason for optimism after his third placing in the first session and top time in the second.

“I would not go so far as to speak about being confident, as the weather conditions were too mixed to gain a clear picture,” Schumacher said. “On the other hand, it is good to see that we were competitive in different circumstances today and that the car provides good handling – I just feel it.”

The legality of Mercedes’ wing design had been questioned by some rival teams, but was approved by the sport’s governing body, the FIA. That leaves other teams having to play catch-up to come up with a similar concept, which has slots on the underside of the wing to increase downforce without sacrificing straight-line speed.

Raikkonen, back from two years away from F1, suffered a steering problem in the opening session and was only able to post flying laps in the final 15 minutes. He also had very limited running in session two.

Whatever problems Lotus were having were minor compared to those at HRT. The team, which failed to take part in preseason testing, did not set a time in the opening session, while Narain Karthikeyan’s times were 13.5 seconds off the pace in the second period. Team-mate Pedro de la Rosa did not complete a lap all day, as his car was still under construction.

Ferrari had been playing down expectations after a troubled pre-season, yet Alonso’s pair of fourth placings in both sessions indicated the team should at least be competitive today and in tomorrow’s race.

“There’s no point looking at the time sheet from today with a view to making predictions for qualifying,” Alonso said. “Tomorrow I expect to see a very mixed up grid because there are so many teams that have done a good job over the winter.”

Team-mate Felipe Massa spun off the track in a gravel trap, curtailing his first session, and was seventh in the second practice.

There was a forecast for morning rain today, clearing in the afternoon for qualifying, while tomorrow’s race was expected to be dry.