Sebastian Vettel quicker than Lewis Hamilton in first F1 testing session

He won the only three races not won by defending world champion Hamilton or his team-mate Nico Rosberg last season.

Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton from Britain, left, and Nico Rosberg of Germany, unveil the new F1 Mercedes W07 Hybrid vehicle during the official team presentation at the Catalunya racetrack in Montmelo, just outside of Barcelona, Spain, Monday, Feb. 22, 2016.

Button’s best time was 2.8 seconds slower than Vettel’s, with the top four finishers having done their fastest laps on medium-compound tyres, while the former Brawn man completed his on the soft compound.

With six more days of testing to come before the season gets started, Mercedes’ reliability has sent shockwaves round the paddock. The first of 21 races is on March 20 in Australia.

Hamilton attended a sponsor event in Barcelona on Tuesday night and said then that, while he felt good, he was also sore after his first stint in a Formula One vehicle since last November’s season-ending race.

Carrying different goals for the 2016 Formula One season, Mercedes, McLaren and newcomer Haas unveiled their new cars on Sunday.

“Sometimes you have to stop a bit longer than necessary or than you really want, just to check, other times the driver goes off track, like I did this morning”.

Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull swept aside Williams’ Valtteri Bottas to finish as the third fastest driver, Sport24 reported.

“We completed five more laps today than we did in the first four days of testing past year, which is definitely an improvement”, said Button.

Vettel’s fastest time was a little under half a second better than that managed by world champion Lewis Hamilton, although the Briton’s Mercedes team focused on long-run performance rather than single-lap speed.

Two-time champion Fernando Alonso made his debut in testing by driving 71 laps, another promising sign for McLaren after a disappointing season past year.

Esteban Gutierrez finished sixth in a good second day for Haas, the American-led team debuting in F1 this season. Renault returned with their own team.

“Last year the guys in the garage worked miracles”.

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Because of the similarity between the regulations this year and last, the W07 shares much in common with its predecessor, the W06.

Renault used Jolyon Palmer on their return to the sport as a works team while last year’s strugglers Manor fielded Pascal Wehrlein, though he managed only eight laps.

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said: “It’s a wonderful opportunity for Formula One”.

“We are where we are because we are the best at the moment”.

The Ferrari-engined machine suffered a front-wing failure down the circuit’s main straight, keeping Romain Grosjean in the garage for several hours. “I would say it’s a decent start”.