Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was the fastest in the first practice of the Mexico Grand Prix ahead of Kimi Antonelli, who was chosen as the champion.
Lekler was 0.659s quicker than Antonelli, underscoring expectations that the Ferrari will be strong at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez due to its small turbos, which work well at high altitude.
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth after a soft lap on soft tyres, but his team-mate’s pace will back him up as Ferrari look to win just their third race of the season.
That shouldn’t affect Antonelli too much on Sunday’s world championship weekend, as he only needs the top nine to secure the drivers’ title.
Ten new drivers replaced the regular full-time drivers in the first practice, as most teams took advantage of the circuit’s relative simplicity, and it was not a Sprint weekend to fulfill the rule that rookies run the most in both cars at least twice during the season – only Ferrari fielded both regular drivers in the session.
Mercedes reserve driver and 2023 Formula 2 runner-up Frederik West was the best of the juniors in third, just a tenth behind Antonelli, and Ayumu Iwasa impressed in Max Verstappen’s Red Bull in fifth, less than a second off the pace on the medium tires.
Perhaps most notably, Formula 2 driver Colton Herta completed 24 laps in the session, which meant he covered 100km and thus earned another super license point.
Herta currently has 40 super license points, the minimum required to become a full-time Formula 1 driver, and it is understood that senior officials at Cadillac want to allow him to drive in 2027.
Although Valtteri Bottas signed a multi-year deal when he joined the newcomers earlier this year, his seat is under threat from American Hertha next year.
Colton Herta is a threat to Valtteri Bottas’ Cadillac seat for 2027
Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson is another driver whose future is up in the air despite an impressive season that saw him finish ninth in the Drivers’ Championship, as Red Bull’s youngster Nikola Tsolov could become Formula 2 champion and Red Bull has traditionally promoted young drivers quickly.
Estonian driver Tsolov made his Racing Bulls debut in Mexico on Friday and finished just a tenth behind Arvid Lindblad, who reported that he had stopped bleeding in his right leg as his seat tightened during the drive.
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Nikola Tsolov complained that his leg had “run out of blood”, which meant he couldn’t get out of his car.
British rookie Freddie Slater also made his first F1 practice for Audi but was limited to just 14 laps due to trouble, and Aston Martin rookie Jacques Crawford also stopped on track with a technical failure.
Audi is under investigation for sending Slater to the track with a cooling fan in his car and is likely to face a hefty fine.
Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar suffered a power unit problem early in the session but did not complete any serious qualifying simulations.
All full-time drivers will then return for a second practice It will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 and the Main Event on Friday at 10pm.
Sky Sports F1 live Mexico City GP schedule
Friday, October 30
20:00: The F1 Show
21:00: Press conference of team leaders
21:30: Mexico City Grand Prix 2nd practice (session starts at 22:00)*
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Take a look at the most dramatic moments from the Mexico City Grand Prix
Saturday, October 31
17.15: Mexico City Grand Prix 3rd practice (session starts at 18.30)
20:00: Mexico City Grand Prix Qualifying round preparation
21:00: MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX
11pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook
Sunday, November 1
17:00: F1 Academy Race 3
18:30: Grand Prix Sunday: Mexico City GP build-up
20:00: MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX*
22:00: Checkered Flag: Mexico City GP reaction
11:00 p.m.: Ted’s notebook
*also on Sky Sports Main Event
Formula 1 heads south for the second round of the American triathlon this weekend with the Mexico City Grand Prix on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports NOW – no contract, cancel whenever you want