Mexico GP Free Practice 1: Leclerc ahead of Antonelli, Hamilton P4, Hülkenberg P13

This is a rare sight in Formula 1: almost half the field in the first free practice session consists of junior drivers, with ten teams putting young drivers behind the wheel, whilst Ferrari fielded their regular drivers, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.

The starting line-up: At Red Bull Racing, Max Verstappen is watching from the sidelines, with Japanese driver Ayumu Iwasa taking the wheel for him. At Mercedes, George Russell is sitting out, with Danish driver Frederik Vesti at the wheel. At McLaren, world champion Lando Norris is taking a break, with Italian driver Leonardo Fornaroli taking his place in the car.

Further changes: Italian Gabriele Mini at Alpine for Franco Colapinto; Bulgarian Nikola Tsolov at Racing Bulls for Liam Lawson; Japanese driver Ryo Hirakawa at Hass for Esteban Ocon; American Jak Crawford at Aston Martin for Lance Stroll; Englishman Luke Browning at Williams for Alex Albon, Englishman Freddie Slater at Audi for Gabriel Bortoleto, and American Colton Herta at Cadillac for Valtteri Bottas.

Practice began in pleasant weather, with a moderate 22 degrees and the track at 43 degrees. This is by no means a given in Mexico City. Just a few days earlier, torrential downpours had flooded entire streets and brought the (already chaotic) traffic to a standstill.

What new parts have the teams brought with them? McLaren, Ferrari, the Racing Bulls and Red Bull Racing have larger exhaust vents, typical for the race in Mexico, whilst RBR also features new air-directing elements at the lower end of the sidepod inlet. Audi has different air-directing elements on the rear brake cooling inlets, whilst Alpine has a modified exhaust tailpipe,

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Soon-to-be world champion Kimi Antonelli: The inevitable will then follow in Mexico

The 20-year-old Italian Kimi Antonelli had the chance to secure the 2026 World Championship title at the US Grand Prix. He did everything right: victory in Texas. The title celebrations have nevertheless been postponed. Until Mexico.

Mathias Brunner

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FIA Formula One World Championship

01.11.2026 - 23:15

No new parts: Mercedes, Williams, Aston Martin, Haas and Cadillac.

Ferrari superstar Lewis Hamilton was immediately out on track, carrying a measuring rake to assess the effect of the improved front wing. Hamilton then returned to the pits after an aero run to adjust the front wing, followed by another run for comparison.

Compared to the structure on the Aston Martin, the rake on Hamilton’s Ferrari was laughable: Jak Crawford set out with a measuring rake on the Aston Martin, which could probably also serve as the frame for a ten-man tent.

F1 newcomer Freddie Slater in the Audi was also busy with aero measurements, with the Germans focusing on the front axle.

We’re constantly being asked what these sometimes bizarre-looking grilles are all about, so we’re happy to explain it once again: the grilles measure air pressure and airflow in critical areas, such as the vortices around the wheels or at the sidepod inlets. To do this, the grilles are fitted with what are known as Pitot tubes.

The tube is named after the Frenchman Henri de Pitot (1695–1771), a hydraulic engineer and trained mathematician. He was fascinated by the flows in rivers and canals. It was previously assumed that the flow velocity of a body of water increased with depth. Henri de Pitot invented a device to measure this velocity – this ingeniously simple device is named after him: the Pitot tube, a straight or L-shaped tube open at one end, used to measure the total pressure of liquids or gases, in our case air. It is primarily used to measure speed in aeroplanes and helicopters, but also in Formula 1 racing cars.

At Racing Bulls, however, Formula 2 expert Nikola Tsolov was able to concentrate entirely on driving – without any aerodynamic tests. The first Bulgarian F1 driver noticed: ‘Something’s smoking here.’ Response from the command centre: “The front brakes are a bit hot, but nothing to worry about.”

Future world champion Kimi Antonelli set the early fastest time ahead of Ferrari ace Charles Leclerc. The footage showed that the drivers had their hands full, particularly on the freshly tarmacked sections from Turn 7 to Turn 1. Antonelli scraped over a kerb next to the track, but nothing came of it. Numerous drivers experienced brake lock-ups and smoking tyres.

Red Bull Racing driver Isack Hadjar reported: “Something’s wrong with the engine; I’ve got no power. What’s going on?” The Parisian brought the car back to the pits at a slow pace. The team confirmed: there is a problem with the power unit.

Yellow flags after just under ten minutes: Cadillac driver Colton Herta was off the track. The American needed to score the final point required for his F1 licence – known as the Super Licence – during this free practice session, which consisted of 100 kilometres, by completing 23 laps.

Standings after a quarter of an hour: Leclerc ahead of Antonelli, Alonso and Hülkenberg. Best rookie – Verstappen’s replacement Ayumu Iwasa in 9th place.

McLaren reserve driver Leonardo Fornaroli spun out badly at the fast Turn 11. The Italian F3 and F2 champion radioed in: “That was a close call. Can you have a look at what happened there?”

Fornaroli was in good company: shortly afterwards, superstar Lewis Hamilton also experienced his car’s rear end breaking loose at almost the exact same spot.

A blunder for Audi: Freddie Slater was sent out onto the track with a fan in front of the right-hand sidepod inlet. This will result in a fine from the FIA stewards, typically in the region of 20,000 euros.

Just one lap later, Slater was called back into the pits again. After just six laps – without a flying lap, and therefore without a time – Audi had to end the young Englishman’s race.

Standings after half an hour: Hamilton ahead of Leclerc, Antonelli, Lindblad, Iwasa, Hülkenberg, Alonso and Tsolov.

Cadillac announced that Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas would start the Mexican Grand Prix from the back of the grid because his car required new engine components.

On soft tyres, Charles Leclerc retook the lead after 35 minutes, the Ferrari driver now on soft Pirelli tyres. The Monegasque had already been in the lead in the first 2025 Mexico practice session.

Lewis Hamilton messed up his lap whilst on soft tyres.

Nico Hülkenberg also made a mistake: a wild ride over a kerb.

Then came the yellow flags: Jak Crawford’s Aston Martin-Honda had come to a standstill at Turn 2, triggering a virtual safety car period, whilst the American climbed out of his car.

Nikola Tsolov had other problems: “My right leg has gone numb; there’s no blood flow – the seat just doesn’t fit.” The Bulgarian could be seen struggling to sit upright in his seat. He shook his leg to get back into action.

The Formula 2 driver put in a good practice session; we’ll no doubt see him back in the Racing Bulls cockpit.