Lewis Hamilton fastest in Spanish Grand Prix practice as he fires a title warning to Sebastian Vettel

LEWIS HAMILTON fired a warning to title rival Sebastian Vettel by blasting his way to the top of the time sheets for the Spanish GP.

Hamilton set the quickest times in free practice one and two around the track in Barcelona as he wiped away memories of his shocker in Sochi.

AP:Associated Press

Hamilton finished fourth in the Russian Grand Prix while his Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas had no problems and earned his first win in F1.

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But the Brit was back on the pace in Barcelona and is now hoping for a trouble-free weekend to reduce Vettel’s 13 point lead in the championship.

Hamilton said: “The team has done an amazing job with the upgrades and the car is working just as we expected.

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Hamilton clocked  1:21.51 on medium tyres in first session at Catalunya[/caption]

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Valterri Bottas was second behind Hamilton in first practice session[/caption]

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Fernando Alonso broke down without completing a lap[/caption]

“It’s been a much better start to the weekend for me than in Sochi, so I’m very happy. We’ve just got to keep our heads down and keep working, we want to be number one.”

Bottas was second quickest in both sessions while Vettel struggled to keep up with the Mercedes duo in his Ferrari and said he felt like he was all at sea.

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He said: “I’m not happy. I’m struggling a bit to find the rhythm, I’m struggling a bit with the conditions, probably more myself than the car.

“I wasn’t always feeling like I was captain on board. Sometimes, somebody else was steering my ship. I hope tomorrow, whoever that was, will disappear.”