BAR's test driver Davidson, who will not race on Sunday, set the fastest time in Friday's first free practice when Formula One got to grips with Shanghai's brand-new circuit.

Davidson sped round the state-of-the-art and most expensive circuit on the calendar in one minute 35.369 seconds with Ralf Schumacher second for Williams in 1:35.455.

The German, returning for Williams after a six-race absence following his big crash in the U.S. Grand Prix at Indianapolis in June, set pace for his comeback to active duty.

His teammate Juan Pablo Montoya sits third in 1:35.761, followed by Sauber's Felipe Massa in 1:36.086.

World champion Michael Schumacher, who clinched an unprecedented seventh drivers' crown in Belgium, was a surprise 15th on the timesheets.

Having failed to win either of the past two races, he should have been keen to return to winning ways and claim the maiden victory at the inaugural Chinese GP.

The 35-year-old, however, seemed not eager to win. He was out of the pits about 25 minutes after the session kicks off, becoming the second from the bottom to run on the circuit.