By: Just seven days on, Formula 1 was back in action, this time at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. The first practice session of the weekend has just concluded, with Andrea Kimi Antonelli potentially able to secure the world championship in only his second season in the category.
Despite missing Thursday's media day due to illness, the Bologna-born driver was back at work as normal today, taking part in the opening practice session. What stood out most, however, was the number of rookies on track during the first 60 minutes of the weekend. Under an FIA rule, each team must run a rookie in at least two separate FP1 sessions over the course of the season.
No fewer than 10 young drivers took to the track today. They included the two Italians, Leonardo Fornaroli, driving for McLaren, and Gabriele Minì, who was in action for Alpine on his Formula 1 debut. Alongside the Palermo-born driver, Nikola Tsolov with Racing Bulls and Freddie Slater with Audi also experienced an F1 car for the first time.
Continuing the list of young drivers on track, Frederik Vesti was back with Mercedes, Ayumu Iwasa was at the wheel of the Red Bull, Ryo Hirakawa drove for Haas, Luke Browning for Williams, Jak Crawford for Aston Martin and Colton Herta for Cadillac. It was a particularly large rookie contingent, making this opening practice session an important opportunity for several drivers seeking experience behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car.
Turning to the on-track action in the first hour, the drivers immediately poured onto the circuit to begin their preparations for the rest of the weekend as soon as the pit-lane light turned green. Charles Leclerc was the first to set a timed lap, fitting the hard tyres and stopping the clock at 1:21.965.
Moments later, as home hero Sergio Perez moved into third place, young Arvid Lindblad went to the top of the timesheets. The driver crossed the line in 1:21.082, though he had the benefit of the medium compound. Meanwhile, Isack Hadjar's Red Bull suffered technical issues, forcing the Frenchman to return slowly to the pit lane.
With just over half an hour remaining before the chequered flag, Andrea Kimi Antonelli posted the fastest time of the session, before being overtaken once again by Ferrari's Monegasque driver. Behind them, Lewis Hamilton moved into third, temporarily completing the top three in the timesheets.
Shortly afterwards, the Audi driven by the very young Freddie Slater, the Formula 3 runner-up, also encountered issues. The Briton was therefore forced to park his car in the garage, bringing his track programme to an early end.
Lewis Hamilton, however, was not content with third and continued to push, further improving his time. The Briton set a 1:19.137 to take top spot with around 30 minutes remaining in the session. Later, after switching to the red-walled tyres, it was team-mate Charles Leclerc who came out on top, stopping the clock at 1:18.128 and moving into first place in the standings.
The final minutes of the session were marked by an issue for Jak Crawford's Aston Martin, adding another setback to the British team's programme, and the return to the track of Freddie Slater, who was able to resume running following his earlier technical problems.
At the end of the first 60 minutes of the weekend, Charles Leclerc was therefore fastest, followed by Andrea Kimi Antonelli and young Frederik Vesti. The opening practice session of the Mexican Grand Prix gave a number of rookies track time, while also providing the first indications of the competitive order ahead of the rest of the weekend. Below is the full classification from FP1.
All the news, photos, weather, session times and times from the Mexican GP 2026
