Lewis Hamilton in Jerez on Tuesday

Madrid: Lewis Hamilton set the pace in Formula One testing in Jerez on Tuesday during the McLaren driver’s first appearance in Spain since suffering racial abuse in Barcelona nine days ago.

With few spectators at the southern track and no repeat of the taunting that marred his appearance at the Circuit de Catalunya, it was business as usual for Formula One’s first black driver.

The 23-year-old Briton did 89 laps with a best time of 1:19.102 seconds.

McLaren’s Spanish test driver Pedro de la Rosa was second in 1:19.287 with BMW Sauber’s Polish driver Robert Kubica third on the timesheets and Japan’s Kazuki Nakajima a promising fourth for Williams. Champions Ferrari and Toyota were absent. Japan’s Takuma Sato also joined the session for his first test of the year with Honda-backed Super Aguri, driving the team’s interim car.

Despite the spotlight being on the local fans after the FIA warned Spanish authorities of heavy sanctions if there was any repeat of the Barcelona incidents, the day was uneventful. “There were no cheers, no boos, no barriers and virtually no fans either,” said a BBC radio commentator at the circuit.

Hamilton, who won four races and finished overall runner-up in his rookie season, has become a hate figure in Spain for his rivalry with double world champion Fernando Alonso.

The Spaniard, who was his teammate last year before returning to Renault, is likely to pull in more of a crowd when he joins the test on Wednesday.

Australian Mark Webber, who drives for Red Bull, said it would be wrong to punish Spain for the actions of a few individuals.

He doubted also that Hamilton would win the locals over any time soon.

“We have two races in Spain — one in Barcelona and one in Valencia. They will be extremely well attended and the fans won’t like Lewis and probably won’t for a long time, but that’s the way they are,” he told the BBC.

“They didn’t like Michael (Schumacher) either.”

The season starts with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 16.