Mercedes: Competition hotting up on eventful opening day in Monte Carlo

Lewis topped the morning session with Nico P2. Lewis ended the day with the second fastest time in the afternoon session, while Nico was third quickest.

Both drivers ran the UltraSoft compound tyre in the morning session, the UltraSoft and SuperSoft in the afternoon session.

Lewis Hamilton: "It's been a relatively good day. No real surprises - except that the track has changed slightly at Turn 15, which has made it a bit quicker through there. Although the new tyres are definitely softer than the other compounds, they still feel pretty hard around here. It's not as easy to get them in the window as we would hope. But generally it's been a really positive start. We've got everything we needed done in both sessions and our pace looks good, so hopefully that continues through the rest of the weekend."

Nico Rosberg: "It's great to be back on the streets of my home town here in Monaco - and also to see all the fans so close to us as we're on track. It was a tricky start in to the weekend for us, though. The sessions were a bit messy, with quite a few Virtual Safety Car periods - but I was able to learn a lot on the longer runs we managed to do which was a positive. A big applause for all of the circuit marshals, who did a great job as always to clear the cars quickly. As expected, Red Bull look very strong here. We have some more homework to do during tonight and tomorrow to find some time - but I can't wait for Saturday and the qualifying battle. It should be very close and very exciting, which is great for the sport."

Paddy Lowe, Executive Director (Technical): "It's great to be back in Monaco, as always, with beautiful weather making it all the better. We ran through our intended programme - the only minor setback being a slightly uncomfortable moment when Nico dislodged a loose drain cover. It could have been a far nastier incident, so in the grand scheme of things we can be grateful it was only a puncture with no further damage to the car or otherwise. Today was the first time we've run the UltraSoft compound and it seems to be a decent tyre from what we've seen thus far. As usual in Monaco, lap times are dropping dramatically as the drivers and teams dial into the track - and will continue to do so through the weekend. We've made a good start - but it's clear that qualifying will be a highly competitive affair. We'll be working hard over the next 36 hours to get the car in the best shape possible for Saturday."

Mercedes AMG Petronas