George Russell bounces back in rookie-filled FP1 Barcelona outing

George Russell has ended the opening practice session of the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix on top, logging a 1:16.393 to lead the pack at the end of the 60-minute session.

The F1 drivers returned to the track just several days after the end of the Monaco Grand Prix, where Kimi Antonelli came out on top.

However, Antonelli sat out this session, as did several other full-time drivers, as teams handed an opportunity to rookie drivers.

With Russell leading the way, Oscar Piastri was second for McLaren, two-tenths of a second down on the lead.

Charles Leclerc was third fastest, half a second down on Russell's time.

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Leonardo Fornaroli made his F1 weekend debut and impressed with a run to fifth place, making him the highest-placing rookie in the session.

He trailed Max Verstappen, who complained of a “horrendous” car balance throughout the session.

Paul Aron narrowly missed out on the privilege of topping the rookie drivers, with the Audi man slotting himself into sixth place.

Dino Beganovic, behind the wheel of the Ferrari, was the only other non-full-time driver to make his way into the top 10 as he slotted into eighth, behind Liam Lawson.

Arvid Lindblad was ninth for Racing Bulls, while Franco Colapinto rounded out the top 10.

Colton Herta also made his F1 weekend debut with Cadillac, but ended the session in 21st - the slowest of all drivers and 1.8 seconds down on Valtteri Bottas.

Unfortunately for Williams rookie Luke Browning, an electrical problem with the car kept him in the garage for the entirety of the session.

The on-track action will resume at 17:00 local time with the second practice session of the weekend.