F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix 2015: Lewis Hamilton back on top in bid to halt Nico Rosberg's run of poles

Hamilton is looking to halt Rosberg's run of five straight pole positions and three wins in a row

Lewis Hamilton in first practice for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (Getty Images)

Lewis Hamilton edged out Nico Rosberg in opening practice for Sunday's season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

The triple world champion posted a best lap of one minute and 43.754 seconds at the Yas Marina Circuit to finish the session ahead of Mercedes team-mate Rosberg.

Rosberg, bidding for his sixth consecutive pole position here, and his third win on the spin, was 0.141 seconds adrift of Hamilton.

Mercedes have been the class of the field this season, and Hamilton finished the opening session a quarter of a second clear of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen in third.

Hamilton sealed the championship in Austin last month, but has lost out to Rosberg in the ensuing races in Mexico and Brazil.

And the build-up to Hamilton's last outing in Brazil was overshadowed by his car crash in Monaco where he lost control of his £1.5million Pagani Zonda supercar and hit a stationary vehicle.

Hamilton blamed the incident on a lack of sleep and too much partying which provoked his former McLaren boss Ron Dennis to condemn his behaviour.

Dennis, speaking earlier this week, said: "If he was at McLaren he wouldn't be behaving the way he is because he wouldn't be allowed to ... He's shaking off some chains he didn't want to have."

But Hamilton responded to Dennis's comments in the best possible fashion on Friday after topping the timsheets in the sweltering heat of Abu Dhabi.

The Red Bull of Daniil Kvyat was fourth with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India the only other drivers within a second of Hamilton.

With both driver and team titles long since decided, the biggest news this weekend is likely to emerge away from the track with Red Bull's future still shrouded in uncertainty.

Although team boss Christian Horner went some way to providing some clarity on Friday after he confirmed his team had signed an engine deal for next season.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Horner said: "We've entered the world championship, we've signed a contract for an engine, but I can't tell you what it'll be or called at the moment."

After being snubbed by Mercedes and Ferrari, Red Bull are now almost certain to continue their relationship with Renault. With Kvyat fourth in the standings, Daniel Ricciardo, in the sister Red Bull, was seventh, 1.139 seconds slower than Hamilton's Mercedes.

Force India's Sergio Perez was eighth ahead of Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado with the Williams of Felipe Massa completing the top 10.

McLaren have endured a painful year and Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso finished the opening session in Abu Dhabi 13th and 14th respectively, some two seconds off the pace.

Final Times after First Practice:

1 Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1min 43.754secs

2 Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes GP 1:43.895

3 Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:44.500

4 Daniil Kvyat (Rus) Red Bull 1:44.702

5 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:44.742

6 Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Force India 1:44.751

7 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:44.893

8 Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 1:44.934

9 Pastor Maldonado (Ven) Lotus F1 Team 1:45.314

10 Felipe Massa (Bra) Williams 1:45.433

11 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Williams 1:45.603

12 Max Verstappen (Ned) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:45.718

13 Jenson Button (Gbr) McLaren 1:45.773

14 Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren 1:45.865

15 Felipe Nasr (Bra) Sauber-Ferrari 1:46.115

16 Carlos Sainz (Spa) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1:46.220

17 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber-Ferrari 1:46.407

18 Jolyon Palmer (Gbr) Lotus F1 Team 1:46.501

19 Will Stevens (Gbr) Manor Marussia F1 1:48.836

20 Roberto Merhi (Spa) Manor Marussia F1 1:49.888

PA