Kubica makes grand prix return in Barcelona

Robert Kubica made his return to grand prix action with Williams during the first practice session in Barcelona on Friday, going quicker than his team-mate Lance Stroll. Kubica drove Sergey Sirotkin's car in his first competitive F1 outing since the 2010 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

A few months after finishing fifth at the Yas Marina Circuit for Renault, Kubica suffered life-changing injuries in a rally crash which have since prevented him from returning to F1.

Having tested for Renault and Williams last year, the latter signed him as a test and development driver - with Sirotkin handed the race seat alongside Stroll.

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Kubica has made no secret of his desire to return to F1 full-time with a race seat and enjoyed his first chance to set competitive times against the best on the grid in Barcelona.

Williams' sluggish 2018 car was at the bottom of the timesheets, but Kubica may have been heartened by putting in a top time of one minute 21.510 seconds, eight tenths better than team-mate Stroll.

Both Williams spun in the session, Stroll prompting a Virtual Safety Car after a trip into the gravel, which prevented him from bettering his early efforts.

Looking further up the leaderboard, however, Kubica was within half a second of the Renaults of Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg and the Force India of Esteban Ocon.

Valtteri Bottas delivered impressive pace in the session, his effort of 1:18.148 almost a second quicker than anyone, with Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton a tenth ahead of third-placed Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen in close quarters.

Daniel Ricciardo crashed into the barriers early in the session to limit his running.

Many drivers found running difficult as blustery conditions and the slippery, new asphalt at the Circuit de Catalunya led many to take excursions beyond track limits.