Monaco GP 2013, Practice One: Nico Rosberg sets early pace from Fernando Alonso

Favourites Mercedes straight on the pace as Red Bull make quiet start

Nico Rosberg: Straight into an impressive groove in Monaco

Fernando Alonso was just 0.087 behind Rosberg

Romain Grosjean finished the session third

Kimi Raikkonen attacks the kerbs but was well down the order

Nico Rosberg showed an immediate glimpse of Mercedes' expected strong Monaco pace as the German edged out Ferrari's Fernando Alonso to lead the way in Thursday's Practice One session.

With the Brackley team many pundits' tips to claim a fourth successive pole position this weekend - and potentially their long-awaited first win of the season on Sunday - Rosberg claimed the honours in the first session of the weekend with a quickest time around the tight and twisty street circuit of 1:16.195.

"The Mercedes looked quick and effortlessly quick," said Sky Sports F1's Anthony Davidson after Rosberg set a superior pace to last year's corresponding P1 lap.

However, while Rosberg's immediate turn of pace was ominous in many ways, both Ferraris - and Fernando Alonso in particular - along with Lotus's Romain Grosjean ran the in-form Mercedes man encouragingly close out of the blocks with Alonso a mere 0.087s back as the Spaniard made his own strong start to his bid for a first win with the Scuderia in the Principality.

Despite a scruffy session, Grosjean improved to third in the closing stages to edge himself between the Ferrari number one and fourth-placed Felipe Massa, with Lewis Hamilton nearly three tenths back on his own stable-mate in the sister Mercedes in fifth.

But while Mercedes and Ferrari in particular wasted little time in showing a little of their respective hands, both Red Bull drivers, along with the other Lotus of Kimi Raikkonen, made characteristically quieter starts to F1's most famous event with Mark Webber the fastest of that respective trio in seventh place, eight tenths of a second off Rosberg's pace.

Indeed, the high-profile triumvirate - all past Monaco winners who are expected to challenge for the 2013 victory come the serious business of the race - were all outpaced by Williams' Pastor Maldonado, who appeared to demonstrate that driver feel and skill can still overcome his car's deficiencies around the unique circuit.

The Venezuelan, recognised as a Monaco specialist thanks to a winning record in the junior series', was a massive 1.9s quicker than rookie team-mate Valtteri Bottas, as the struggling Williams team pressed their stepped nose back into service during a back-to-back with the smoother version of the FW35's front.

Both McLaren drivers also finished in the top ten, Jenson Button fractionally ahead of Sergio Perez in eighth, as the Woking team belatedly ran with the new front-wing that was first delivered to the last round in Spain.
World Championship leader Sebastian Vettel, meanwhile, completed fewer laps than most of his chief rivals (23) and took tenth.

Indeed, in keeping with the traditions of a Thursday morning in Monaco, the start to the weekend's opening session proved particularly quiet with all drivers only completing installation laps during the first half an hour.
And while the action ramped up substantially thereafter, the 90 minutes ran largely without major incident, although numerous drivers ran straight on at the harbourside chicane and Adrian Sutil was lucky not to do more serious damage to the rear of his Force India after grazing the barrier in a 180-degree spin into St Devote.

More answers as to where the balance of power lies at the head of the timesheet are likely to reveal themselves in the later P2 session, but Martin Brundle has already seen enough to predict that a tightly-contested battle for victory is in store this weekend.

"The story for me is that we've got a real race on our hands. Mercedes are strong, unsurprisingly, Red Bull are in there without a doubt, Ferrari look good, Lotus look good...they're all in the fight," the Sky Sports F1 commentator said.

"Also the pace looked good. The tyres looked like they were hanging on pretty well too, despite it being a green track and lots of new surfaces here. I'd say a very encouraging first session."