Hamilton leads Button in first Abu Dhabi practice

Abu Dhabi: One British Formula One world champion led another in first practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on Friday with Lewis Hamilton just ahead of successor Jenson Button.

Spanish rookie Jaime Alguersuari, driving a Toro Rosso, had the honour of setting the first competitive timed lap at the lavish new Yas Marina circuit in an incident-free opening session. McLaren`s Hamilton and Brawn`s Button traded fastest laps towards the end of the session with the outgoing champion coming out on top with a best of one minute 43.939 seconds. Button, looking forward to his first race of the year with no pressure after he secured the title at the previous race in Brazil, was 0.096 slower. Red Bull`s Sebastian Vettel was third on the timesheets ahead of Brawn`s Rubens Barrichello. With track temperatures of 35 degrees and a new but dusty surface, the leading drivers sat out the first half hour before taking to the track. Bureau Report