First practice in Austin was a very odd session, with the first problem a delay of 40 minutes due to the fog. The session was shortened to one hour because of the hefty delay, but the running couldn't really get underway until there were just thirty minutes left - because the medical helicopter had an antennae problem and a replacement had to arrive. In the end, Fernando Alonso was fastest, with Jenson Button and Valtteri Bottas behind. Sebastian Vettel finished way down in 18th, with no specific problems. He was just behind Toro Rosso's Daniil Kvyat who got 20 laps of practice ahead of his promotion to the race seat in 2014.