Manchester United's Lisandro Martinez, Everton's Michael Keane and Sunderland's Dan Ballard were shown red cards for pulling an opponent's hair last season.
At 41, Cristiano Ronaldo will be heading to his record sixth World Cup, but there are concerns in some quarters that his presence will prevent Roberto Martinez's strong side from flourishing.
Charles Leclerc, in his upgraded Ferrari, came in half a second behind Russell's top time of 1:16.363, with the Mercedes driver needing the morale boost after weeks of struggle.