Mercedes's Nico Rosberg recorded the fastest time in the first practice of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone as Susie Wolff became the first female to take part in a race weekend in 22 years.

The 31-year-old's time on the circuit came to an abrupt end when her Williams car pulled to a stop on the side of the track after 20 minutes due to an issue with oil pressure.

Shortly afterwards, her teammate Felipe Massa crashed into the wall just in front of the pit lane exit, which resulted in the front left of the car being torn off and damage to the gearbox.

The session was halted briefly following the crash, but drivers returned to the track eventually as Rosberg began to lead the way, with his teammate Lewis Hamilton sitting seven tenths off the pace at the time.

Ferrari's Fernando Alonso followed the Mercedes duo by finishing third in the practice standings, while Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo clocked the fourth-quickest time at Silverstone.

Full practice standings:

1. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
3. Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
4. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)
5. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
6. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
7. Jenson Button (McLaren)
8. Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso)
9. Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso)
10. Kevin Magnussen (McLaren)
11. Sergio Perez (Force India)
12. Romain Grosjean (Lotus)
13. Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber)
14. Daniel Juncadella (Force India)
15. Giedo van der Garde (Sauber)
16. Jules Bianchi (Marussia)
17. Felipe Massa (Williams)
18. Max Chilton (Marussia)
19. Marcus Ericsson (Caterham)
20. Susie Wolff (Williams)
21. Pastor Maldonado (Lotus)