Leclerc quickest in FP1 as Lindblad heads rookies

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc went fastest in opening practice for the Mexico Grand Prix, as nine rookies got valuable Formula 1 track time.

In a session that was sat out by the likes title contenders Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, as well as seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, due to teams seeking to fulfil sporting regulations regarding young drivers, Leclerc outpaced his rivals with a 1m18.380s marker.

The track was in its familiar dusty state with poor grip during the opening session at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, and most cars spent the initial 25 minutes getting to grips with the track on hard rubber, with Antonelli then fastest of these in 1m20.035s. Just a handful of drivers already used mediums then, among whom Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar was fastest in 1m20.005s.

Lap times unsurprisingly got significantly faster as most runners bolted soft tyres on, while remaining more than two seconds slower than last year’s pole position by Carlos Sainz, then at Ferrari, a 1m15.946s.

Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli eventually took second place in 1m18.487s, with Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg making up the top three, nearly four tenths down on the leader.

Championship leader Oscar Piastri was fourth-fastest as Gabriel Bortoleto made it two Saubers in the top five; the Swiss team was the only one that previously fulfilled its rookie requirements for the 2025 season.

Max Verstappen’s Red Bull stand-in and a likely Racing Bulls F1 2026 graduate, Arvid Lindblad was by far the quickest rookie in 1m18.997, a lap time he set quite late in the session.

All other debutants propped up the timesheet, but it is worth noting that Ayumu Iwasa (Racing Bulls), Luke Browning(Williams) and Jak Crawford (Aston Martin) never used soft tyres – neither did Hadjar and Alex Albon – while Ferrari’s Le Mans 24 Hours winner Antonio Fuoco did not seem to seek performance.

Everyone stayed clear of the walls throughout the session, though Franco Colapinto, Hadjar and Piastri did harmlessly end up off the track once each.

Mexico GP – FP1 results

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