By PAUL LOGOTHETIS
AP Auto Racing Writer
SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) Formula One's new teams Lotus, Virgin Racing and Hispania Racing took part in the Bahrain Grand Prix's opening practice session on Friday, defying expectations.
``Bahrain is a hard race to start. It's very hot, dry and there is sand so it's a baptism of fire for us,'' Lotus owner Tony Fernandes said. ``But hey, you got to start somewhere so let's hope that we finish the race.''
Lotus driver Heikki Kovalainen was fastest among the newcomers, clocking 2 minutes, 00.873 seconds nearly 5.5 seconds behind pacesetter Nico Rosberg of Mercedes.
Bruno Senna experienced clutch problems at the start but eventually ran 20 laps for HRT which missed all of preseason testing with a best time of 2:06.968.
``It was certainly a relief to make history this morning,'' said Senna, the nephew of three-time champion Ayrton Senna. ``Of course, we could not try the car at its limits.''
Senna's car failed on his final lap, as the Brazilian driver ran wide and lost a part of his rear tire, raising questions over safety.
Last year, Felipe Massa was in a near-fatal crash after a spring that had come loose from another car knocked him unconscious during qualifying for the Hungarian GP.
``It's always important to have a safe car,'' Massa said.
Senna teammate Karun Chandhok was sidelined because his car had hydraulic and electronic problems.
``This was not the debut I was hoping for,'' Chandhok said, ``but this is the way it is and we will do our best for the remainder of the weekend.''
Jarno Trulli in a Lotus finished just one-tenth behind teammate Kovalainen. Timo Glock was fastest for Virgin with a best lap of 2:02.037 for a similar advantage over his teammate Lucas Di Grassi.
Lotus, which returns to F1 with Malaysian backing after a 16-year absence, was one of the most productive teams of the session with Kovalainen and Trulli combining for 73 laps.
Fernandes said the proudest achievement for the Malaysian team was to make it to the starting grid while USF1 did not, even though the American team started its project three months earlier. USF1 will not take part this year, but has indicated an interest in the 2011 season.
HRT was always going to be a last-minute arrival at Bahrain, and the fact that there were no glaring technical faults and the car was being prepared for racing was an achievement, though it required mechanics and team principal Colin Kolles to work through the night.
FIA president Jean Todt said the new teams deserved praise rather than criticism for their great efforts to arrive.
``You must have respect to a new team that is arriving in this particular crisis time and to invest money in Formula One,'' Todt said. ``It's not a time to criticize but to help and reward them. Everyone in the business should be supportive to these teams.''
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