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Rookies step in as opening practice gets underway
Charles Leclerc recorded the fastest time during opening practice for the Mexico City Grand Prix, heading Kimi Antonelli and Frederik Vesti in a session that featured ten substitute rookies. The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez circuit is traditionally a popular venue for teams to grant opportunities to young competitors. Its comparatively straightforward track layout means there is a lower probability of cars being damaged by inexperienced drivers, unlike street venues such as Monaco. Ten rookies stepped in for regular competitors, including stand-ins for Max Verstappen, George Russell, and Lando Norris. Particular focus fell on Nikola Tsolov and Colton Herta, two drivers who appear to still have a prospect of securing a race seat for next season. Antonelli and Sergio Pérez took part after missing several events earlier in the weekend due to illness, while Valtteri Bottas also recovered ahead of running later in the evening after relinquishing his car for the opening session.
Slick surface and early Red Bull trouble
All drivers headed immediately out onto the greasy surface. Cockpit onboard cameras proved that cars were sliding and slipping once again across the Mexican asphalt. Serious flying lap times could only be registered after a few initial laps, with Antonelli recording a provisional benchmark of 1:20.814 on the hard tyre compound. Verstappen replacement Iwasa trailed behind the Italian and ranked as the top performer among the rookie field. Red Bull Racing hit problems when Hadjar suffered another car issue. Following his dramatic misfortunes in Singapore, the French driver faced the prospect of another troubled weekend. Hadjar managed to limp his RB22 back to the pit lane garage, where mechanics removed the front nose assembly while he sat in the cockpit following procedural directions to trace an apparent steering rack defect.
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Leclerc advances while Slater encounters setbacks
Leclerc subsequently snatched the fastest time away from Antonelli with a 1:19.197. Some notable times appeared behind them, with Fernando Alonso holding provisional third and Oliver Bearman occupying fourth place. During an opening run on yellow-banded tyres, Tsolov posted a faster lap than regular Racing Bull entrant Lindblad, showing strong pace for the Bulgarian driver. Freddie Slater faced an arduous session with Audi. The 18-year-old Formula 3 competitor failed to record a timed lap during his initial running before being dispatched from the garage with an engine cooling fan mistakenly left in his right sidepod. A vehicle issue forced him back into the garage on his next tour, and Slater was informed that he would not return to the circuit. Nevertheless, Audi managed to get him back out to complete a solitary lap before the chequered flag fell.
Soft tyres and qualifying simulations
Qualifying simulation runs commenced as drivers were sent out on red soft tyres. Red Bull adopted a differing tyre strategy for Iwasa, assigning him yellow medium rubber to save a fresh set of softs for four-time champion Verstappen. Ferrari showed excellent speed in the opening practice hour, continuing a familiar trend for the Italian outfit. Leclerc set a benchmark of 1:18.128 on softs, going quicker than the top time from the equivalent session twelve months earlier, which the Monegasque driver also topped. Leclerc finished ahead of Antonelli in second place. Red Bull demonstrated encouraging pace as Iwasa secured provisional fourth on medium compound tyres, while Frederik Vesti posted a competitive effort closely trailing Antonelli.
Virtual safety car interrupts closing phase
A virtual safety car period was triggered when Jak Crawford stopped out on track. The Aston Martin machine, normally raced by Lance Stroll, suffered a failure, prompting an urgent radio message instructing the rookie driver to park by the roadside. Green flag conditions were restored shortly afterward. Although numerous drivers logged further laps on soft tyres during the closing minutes, no further improvements were posted on the timing screens. Leclerc consequently concluded the opening practice hour in Mexico on top, matching his benchmark result from Austin the previous weekend.
Sources: Uitslag eerste vrije training F1 Grand Prix Mexico 2026.
