Lewis Hamilton claimed his first Ferrari pole for a Formula 1 grand prix and the team’s first of the 2026 season in Mexico, beating George Russell by just 0.009 seconds during a tense qualifying session.
Hamilton had botched his banking lap earlier in Q3, missing the apex at Turn 10, but made no mistake in his final attempt to move Russell’s Mercedes to the top of the standings.
His teammate Charles Leclerc seemed to have the upper hand on Hamilton all weekend and even held the fastest time before the final runs of Q3, but was unable to improve significantly on his final flying lap and had to settle for third place, 0.119 seconds behind Hamilton. It was a slide at turn 10 that cost Leclerc dearly, like Hamilton earlier.
Hamilton, 41, becomes the oldest driver to win a pole since Mario Andretti, 42, in 1982, and extends his own F1 record to 105 poles.
The tense finale was mainly caused by Max Verstappen coming alive in Q2, but Red Bull’s repeated brake problems at Turn 13 struck again. Verstappen had the fastest first sector and set a personal best in the middle sector before a huge smoke screen spoiled the lap and he limped across the line to place fourth. He receives a one-place penalty for his Friday incident with Liam Lawson.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli finished fifth and although he is likely to seal the title this weekend, he looked second to Russell in trying to bring the recalcitrant Mercedes into a window where pace is extractable.
Lando Norris came out of his last lap and starts sixth, ahead of Isack Hadjar who also had problems at turn 13 in his Red Bull, like Verstappen.
The Racing Bulls of Lawson and Arvid Lindblad (who will swap places when Lawson’s penalty is applied) led the midfield ahead of Pierre Gasly’s Alpine.
Lindblad had initially set a time that was second fastest in Q2, a record time, but failed to maintain that pace until Q3.
Shock Piastri Q2
Oscar Piastri had looked competitive in Q1 but came out in Q2 in shock circumstances for the first time in two years, as his McLaren teammate Norris was the fastest in the session!
Piastri was unable to exit the drop zone on his final flying lap as he was more than three tenths behind 10th-placed Gasly in 13th. Just moments after this shock, Norris crossed the finish line with a record time of 1’16”728 to show what the McLaren package was capable of, at least in Q2.
Piastri was complaining about the lack of rear grip, and he went out before Q3 for the first time since Mexico 2024.
Nico Hulkenberg’s Audi was the first car out, just 0.028 seconds behind Gasly, ahead of Alpine teammate Franco Colapinto and Piastri.
Gabriel Bortoleto took 14th place, ahead of a sorry Ollie Bearman who made a mistake in the last sector. The Williams of Carlos Sainz was well out of the battle, even 0.802 seconds behind Bearman.
Aston Martin’s missed opportunity
Fernando Alonso was initially fastest in Q1 – admittedly before all the top teams had set a time – when he stopped in the stadium section with a suspected ERS-related water pressure problem.
“We lost a great opportunity,” he said after the first quarter, adding that “the frustration is beyond imagination.”
Alonso had slammed his steering wheel furiously and eventually dropped all the way to 18th – still ahead of Aston Martin teammate Lance Stroll who was also unable to maximize the Honda-powered package, in 20th.
Alex Albon was the quickest victim of Q1 – 15-4 ahead of teammate Carlos Sainz this year now for Williams.
Le Mans winner and world endurance champion Ryo Hirakawa has replaced the “not ill” Esteban Ocon as speculation intensifies over why the Frenchman was ruled out mid-weekend.
Hirakawa’s time was not spectacular in 19th – between Alonso and Stroll – and a second place ahead of his teammate Bearman in the other Haas. But he was just over three-tenths behind Bearman in the first two runs, running into a Williams on his final flying lap, which likely blunted his chances.
During his home Grand Prix, Sergio Pérez won the battle, although not very difficult, of his teammate Cadillac against Valtteri Bottas, with more than seven tenths ahead of Bottas.
Results
1 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) 1m16.514s
2 George Russell (Mercedes) +0.009s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.119s
4Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +0.178s
5Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) +0.193s
6Lando Norris (McLaren) +0.310s
7 Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) +0.386s
8 Liam Lawson (Running Bulls) +0.515s
9 Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls) +0.603s
10 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) +0.639s
T2
11 Nico Hulkenberg (Audi) 1m17.306s (0.036s difference from 10th)
12 Franco Colapinto (Alpine) +0.334s
13Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +0.340s
14Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) +0.374s
15Ollie Bearman (Haas) +0.777s
16Carlos Sainz (Williams) +1.579s
T1
17 Alex Albon (Williams) 1m18.630s (0.109s difference from 16th)
18Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) +0.278s
19 Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) +0.328s
20 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) +0.442s
21 Sergio Pérez (Cadillac) +0.475s
22 Valtteri Bottas (Cadillac) +1.222s
Gn sports
