Formula 1: World champion Fernando Alonso struck the first blow at the Canadian Grand Prix by clocking the fastest lap time during the opening practice session in Montreal.
The Spaniard was two tenths of a second faster than rookie team-mate Lewis Hamilton as once again the McLaren team outpaced their main rivals Ferrari.
McLaren was last week cleared by the FIA of charges that it issued team orders at the Monaco Grand Prix to allow Alonso to win the race ahead of Hamilton, but the more experienced man went quicker here as the 22-year-old Briton got in the first laps of his fledgling career on the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve.
Hamilton completed 20 laps during the 90-minute session, compared to Alonso's 17, having said he would be cautious during practice as he got to know the track and on his third venture out of the pits he certainly slowed down off the pace as the clock ticked down to end the first period.
Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was another driver to go quicker than his less experienced team-mate Felipe Massa. The Ferraris were third and fourth fastest during the session.
Best of the rest was the Red Bull of Australian Mark Webber, who turned in his quickest lap in the closing minutes of first practice to edge Giancarlo Fisichella's Renault into sixth.
Nick Heidfeld of BMW Sauber was seventh fastest, Ralf Schumacher's Toyota eighth and the Red Bull of David Coulthard was ninth.