MONTREAL — Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton put Monaco disappointment behind him to set the first practice pace at the Canadian Grand Prix Friday. The Briton, his morale undented by the lingering disappointment of losing to teammate Nico Rosberg after a pitstop blunder 12 days ago, was comfortably fastest at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Hamilton's best lap of one minute 16.212 seconds was 0.415 quicker than Rosberg's fastest effort with Mercedes again dominant at a track whose long straights reward engine performance but put a heavy burden on brakes. Hamilton, a three times Canadian GP winner who leads Rosberg by 10 points after six races, had a late spin at the turn 10 hairpin but without consequence. Mercedes-engined cars filled the top four slots in the cloudy opening session, after light morning rain, with Romain Grosjean's third-placed Lotus more than one and a half seconds slower than Hamilton. Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel was fifth fastest, behind Nico Hulkenberg's Force India. Fernando Alonso, still chasing his first points of the season, was ninth quickest for Honda-powered McLaren while Dutch 17-year-old Max Verstappen was 10th for Renault-engined Toro Rosso. Verstappen's Spanish rookie teammate Carlos Sainz had a more troubled session and had to be pushed back to the garage after stopping at the end of the pitlane. He also spun earlier in the morning. — Reuters
