Christopher Haase kicked off the Sprint Cup weekend at Misano in style by putting Comtoyou Racing on top in this morning's Free Practice.
The #11 Audi led the way at the conclusion of a competitive session, which saw 24 cars separated by just a second. Haase delivered a 1m31.954s to beat Giacomo Altoé (#14 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari) to P1. Notably, the Italian was the only other driver to break into the 1m31s.
Third went to the #32 Team WRT BMW of Charles Weerts, who is looking to extend a five-race winning steak at Misano. The #87 Akkodis ASP Mercedes-AMG completed a top-four featuring as many different brands, with Jim Pla setting a 1m32.220s that also put the French team on top of the Bronze Cup order.
Niklas Krütten led the Gold Cup runners at the wheel of the #30 Team WRT BMW. The German driver posted a 1m32.600s, edging out the #26 Saintéloc Junior Team Audi by just 0.010s. Tresor Attempto Racing paced the Silver Cup class courtesy of its #333 Audi. Sprint Cup debutant Pietro Delli Guanti was at the wheel for a 1m32.619s.
All but one of the 42 cars entered for this weekend's event turned laps in Free Practice. The exception was the #99 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi, which was absent throughout the 80 minutes.
Two red flags interrupted the session, the first caused by the #52 AF Corse Ferrari of Louis Machiels spinning into the gravel at turn 13. The second was caused by a different car from the same team, with youngster Nicola Marinageli also finding the gravel in the #71 Ferrari. Both stoppages were brief, ensuring that plenty of running was completed.
Cars will be back on-track at 15:20 CEST for Pre-Qualifying, which will provide another 80 minutes of running for the full field. Live streaming begins with Saturday morning's qualifying session and continues for the remainder of the weekend.