Lewis Hamilton will continue to piece together his Valencia Street Circuit jigsaw puzzle on Saturday as he bids to strengthen his Formula One world championship lead.
Hamilton ended the first two 90-minute practice sessions ahead of Sunday's European Grand Prix with the fifth-best time of the day behind reigning world champion and title rival Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari.
The Finn set a time of one minute 39.477 seconds for the 5.440km track that winds its way through the marina of Spain's third-largest city, with Hamilton 0.235 seconds adrift.
There was one spin from the McLaren star in the morning, but then the 23-year-old was not alone in making a mistake as virtually all the drivers did so at some stage during the day as they attempted to get to grips with what is virgin territory.
Hamilton, who leads Raikkonen by five points in the standings, said: "It's quite a nice track, a bit slippery, but I enjoyed it.
"It was quite unusual at the beginning because everything was so new, even though I'd walked the circuit.
"When you're in the car the corners come up a lot quicker than you anticipate.
"I just took time to get used to that, taking notes of braking points, bumps and how much kerb I could use.
"The two long straights give you time to cool your tyres, then there are slower corners which demand you get your braking right.
"It is tricky, but not hard to memorise. I've taken things step by step, trying to improve the car's balance.
"All the time I was out there I was learning new things about the track.
"It's just a matter of finding all the pieces and putting the puzzle together."
Hamilton will look to improve further in Saturday's final hour-long practice session ahead of qualifying.
"I feel good," added Hamilton.
"We've had a good day, apart from one little spin, and I think we've started on the right foot.
"We've slowly increased our pace and got though the testing programme."
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