Australian Grand Prix: Carlos Sainz leads Ferrari attack in first practice, Sebastian Vettel faints

Ferrari duo Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc set the pace and led the schedule for the first practice session in Melbourne on Friday; Sebastian Vettel's return from Covid-19 ends with Aston Martin breaking up.

Ferrari duo Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc set an early milestone for the Australian Grand Prix, topping the schedule at the end of Friday's first practice session.

It was Sainz, currently second in the drivers' standings, leading Bahrain GP winner and title leader Leclerc, both of whom clocked under 1'20 times. Surround the Albert Park Track with a new look with soft tires. Red Bull pair Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen were just behind them in third and fourth, but Lewis Hamilton was more than 1.2 seconds off Sainz's best time as Mercedes overcame a challenge earlier in the year with the battle they faced with their W13 car season.

Mercedes did not make any improvements in Melbourne, unlike its faster rivals, Ferrari and Red Bull, which unveiled a new diffuser and front wing, respectively.

After missing the first two races of 2022 due to Covid-19, Sebastian Vettel's return ended with his Aston Martin dispersing in a puff of smoke - one of two incidents that briefly marked the session.

Sainz got off to a slow start in Melbourne after Ferrari changed plans to collect some data on front-wing flexing, which has recently occurred in Saudi Arabia. Still, once the Spaniard was on track, he and Leclerc remained vigilant. It-Time to catch the hard tires. A switch to soft Pirellis for both in the second half of the hour-long session set the pace for the rest of the pitch, with Perez and Verstappen finishing in P1 behind them after superb runs on the soft tire.

Hamilton was the best of the Mercedes drivers with the seventh-fastest time in the session, while team-mate George Russell remained in 12th place.

Elsewhere on the pitch, McLaren showed some encouraging signs as Lando Norris was fifth fastest and Daniel Ricciardo, who competed in his home Grand Prix, finished eighth. Vettel, meanwhile, was 13th after the split and ended the session when debris from behind Perez's car drew a red flag earlier in the day.

On Friday, a second training session followed with a live session at 7 am on Sky Sports F1, accumulating at 18:45.