Melbourne: McLaren driver Jenson Button set the fastest time in Friday's practice for Formula One's season-opening Australian Grand Prix as a wet track in the second session prevented teams from showing their true pace.
Button set the best time in opening practice, just ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton, and an afternoon downpour meant the second-session times were a couple of seconds off those set earlier.
In the second practice session, Mercedes' Michael Schumacher was fastest, a tenth of a second ahead of Force India's Nico Hulkenberg.
Rain also affected the opening session, and dry-tire running was only possible in the final half hour. Button's best time of 1 minute, 27.560 seconds was four seconds off Sebastian Vettel's pole time in 2011.
The opening session should prove a better guide to how teams will perform in Saturday's qualifying session.
Button was a quarter of a second ahead of Hamilton, and there was a gap of four tenths of a second back to Schumacher, followed by Ferrari's Fernando Alonso, local hope Mark Webber of Red Bull and Mercedes' Nico Rosberg. The top ten was rounded out by another Australian in Toro Rosso's Daniel Ricciardo, Williams' Pastor Maldonado, Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen and Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi.
Reigning world champion Vettel was curiously off the pace in both sessions, finishing 11th in the opening session and tenth in the second.
On the slim evidence of one day of practice, it appeared McLaren, Mercedes and perhaps other teams have closed the gap on Red Bull, who were so dominant last season when Vettel recorded a record number of pole positions and coasted to the title.
Raikkonen, back from two years away from F1, was hampered by a steering problem in the opening session and was only able to post flying laps in the final 15 minutes. He also had very limited running in session two.
Whatever problems Lotus were having were minor compared to those at HRT. The team, which failed to take part in preseason testing, did not set a time in the opening session, while Narain Karthikeyan's times were 13.5 seconds off the pace in the second period. Teammate Pedro de la Rosa did not complete a lap all day, as his car was still under construction.
Unless the team can rapidly improve the car overnight, HRT look like again suffering the fate of last season's Australian GP, and again being denied their places in the race because their times are more than one hundred seven percent slower than the best qualifying time.
The leading times set by the McLarens were testament to the more settled preseason campaign the team has enjoyed going into 2012, after the difficulties of the previous season when it had to overhaul its design just before the opening race.
Schumacher, still looking for his first podium position since his comeback to the sport, had reason for optimism after his third placing in the first session and top time in the second.
The legality of Mercedes' rear wing had been questioned by some rival teams, but was approved by the sport's governing body, the FIA. That leaves other teams having to play catch-up to come up with a similar design, which has slots on the underside of the wing to increase downforce without sacrificing straight-line speed.
Ferrari had been playing down expectations after a troubled preseason, yet Alonso's pair of fourth placings in both sessions indicated the team should at least be competitive on Saturday and in Sunday's race.
Teammate Felipe Massa spun off the track in a gravel trap, curtailing his first session, and was seventh in the second practice.
There was a forecast for morning rain on Saturday, clearing in the afternoon for qualifying, while Sunday's race was expected to be dry.
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