Rosberg leads Bahrain practice; Schumacher 3rd

SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) -Nico Rosberg was fastest in practice for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, with teammate Michael Schumacher finishing third to put Mercedes at the front of the Formula One grid.

Rosberg finished in 1 minute, 55.409 seconds Friday to lead Lewis Hamilton of McLaren and Schumacher by just under a half-second after two sessions.

Schumacher, a seven-time champion who is racing for the first time in three years, said he needed to shake off the rust in time for Saturday's qualifying.

Defending champion Jenson Button was fourth for McLaren, ahead of Red Bull driver Sebastian Vettel, who was slightly more than one second off Rosberg's pace.

Felipe Massa finished 1.1 seconds behind and Ferrari teammate Fernando Alonso was 1.3 seconds back.