Spielberg, Austria - Mercedes set the pace in first practice for the Austrian Grand Prix on Friday while Ferrari principal Maurizio Arrivabene risked being run over in pit lane by his team's former driver Felipe Massa.
While Formula One champion Mercedes led the times as expected, with Nico Rosberg fastest ahead of championship leader Lewis Hamilton, Arrivabene's moment of inattention provided an early talking point.
The Italian stepped off the pit wall as Massa's Williams was pulling out of the garage, jumping back as the Brazilian braked and then giving him the thumbs up. Both were able to laugh about it afterwards.
The Ferrari boss had something to smile and frown about on the track, with Kimi Raikkonen posting the third best time while four-times world champion Sebastian Vettel parked stopped on the circuit after losing fourth gear.
Vettel completed only four laps and ended up bottom of the timesheets with a lap of 1m 15.684s compared to Rosberg's best of 1:10.401.
Hamilton, who sounded tetchy on the team radio, was 0.308 slower than his team-mate.
"How many changes do you guys want me to do, can I just focus on driving?," the champion said over the team radio in response to one request.
Several drivers, including Hamilton, ran off at the second-last corner on an overcast day after a damp start to the morning.
McLaren's Fernando Alonso, with a big upgrade on his car but an even bigger grid penalty coming his way after changes to the engine, was only 17th fastest after a troubled start that saw his car break down before he had done a lap, which kept him in the garage until the final 15 minutes.
Valtteri Bottas was fourth fastest for Mercedes-powered Williams at the track where the Finn took his first podium finish in 2014. - Reuters
RESULTS - FIRST SESSION
1 Nico Rosberg (Germany) Mercedes - 1m10.401s
2 Lewis Hamilton (Britain) Mercedes - 1:10.709
3 Kimi Raikkonen (Finland) Ferrari - 1:11.028
4 Valtteri Bottas (Finland) Williams - 1:11.452
5 Felipe Nasr (Brazil) Sauber - 1:11.633
6 Daniil Kvyat (Russia) Red Bull - 1:11.642
7 Daniel Ricciardo (Australia) Red Bull - 1:11.724
8 Max Verstappen (Netherlands) Toro Rosso - 1:11.825
9 Felipe Massa (Brazil) Williams - 1:11.890
10 Sergio Perez (Mexico) Force India - 1:11.905
11 Carlos Sainz Jr (Spain) Toro Rosso - 1:11.948
12 Pastor Maldonado (Venezuela) Lotus - 1:12.004
13 Nico Hulkenberg (Germany) Force India - 1:12.031
14 Jolyon Palmer (Britain) Lotus - 1:12.050
15 Marcus Ericsson (Sweden) Sauber - 1:12.159
16 Jenson Button (Britain) McLaren - 1:12.920
17 Fernando Alonso (Spain) McLaren - 1:13.272
18 Will Stevens (Britain) Marussia - 1:13.937
19 Roberto Merhi (Spain) Marussia - 1:15.459
20 Sebastian Vettel (Germany) Ferrari - 1:15.684