After Mercedes defied the odds to beat a faster Red Bull to a narrow victory at the first in Bahrain, the world champions finished the first day of practice at Imola looking like the favourites.
But was it a case of returning to business as usual or will Red Bull hit back in qualifying?
A drivershaft failure prevented Max Verstappen from setting a competitive lap time during the second practice session at Imola on Friday afternoon, paving the way for Mercedes to finish the opening day of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in first and second.
Valtteri Bottas beat Lewis Hamilton to the fastest time -- as he did in qualifying at this circuit last year -- but neither driver appeared to push the limit on their hot laps.