WATCH: Early spin halts Alonso, McLaren

McLaren suffered what former boss Ron Dennis might have termed a 'sub-optimal' start to testing on Monday morning after a loose wheel pitched Fernando Alonso off the track after less than an hour’s running.

The Spaniard was left beached in the gravel at Barcelona’s final turn, bringing out the first red flag of the day and prematurely ending his first proper outing in the team’s new Renault-powered MCL33 after just six laps - hardly the start McLaren were looking for as they sought to put previous poor pre-season form behind them.

Prior to his off, which McLaren Executive Director Zak Brown said was caused by a wheelnut issue, Alonso had worked down to a best time of 1m 24.202s on Pirelli's supersoft tyres. However, whilst his car was quickly returned to the pits, as the clock ticked towards lunchtime the double world champion was still in the garage as his mechanics checked for possible damage.

You can follow minute-by-minute Live Timing from pre-season testing on the Official F1 App. For more information, click here.