Max Verstappen is facing a stewards' investigation after a clash with an Audi during opening practice for the GTWCE round at Portimão.
The four-time Formula 1 champion was back behind the wheel of the Mercedes-AMG GT3, after already turning laps on Thursday's paid test session. Free Practice 1 got underway at 08:45 BST on the Algarve circuit, marking the first official session of the weekend.
Verstappen wasted no time getting out on track in the #3 car, settling in for what would become a lengthy stint. But before it really got going, there was early drama in Turn 3, where he attempted to pass the #25 Audi of Ezequiel Pérez Companc on the inside.
There was not enough room for the move, and the Audi was sent into a spin. The incident is now being looked at by race control.
Max Verstappen gathers significant data
Verstappen stayed out for 27 laps, racking up more than 40 minutes of track time during the 90-minute session.
His pace improved steadily throughout the run, climbing from the higher 1m 43s bracket early on to a best lap of 1m 43.046, which was good enough for 18th at the time, in a field of 61 cars where the gaps at the front were tiny.
After his stint, Verstappen handed the car over to team-mate Chris Lulham, the only full-time Verstappen Racing driver on duty this weekend. The Briton used his laps to build up rhythm but could not beat Verstappen's time.
Ben Barnicoat then took his turn behind the wheel but also failed to improve on the benchmark, leaving the team in 20th place overall.
It was a German affair at the top of the times, with Marcus Winkelhock quickest in the #84 Audi R8 LMS GT3 on a 1m42.643. He was followed by the #32 BMW, the #99 Audi, the #98 BMW and the #46 BMW, the latter featuring Valentino Rossi among its drivers.
The best-placed Mercedes was the #17 Team GetSpeed entry in sixth, meaning Verstappen's squad ended up around four tenths off the pace. The times carry little weight at this stage of the weekend, however, with the focus still on fine-tuning the car's set-up ahead of qualifying and the race.
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