Lewis Hamilton secures first Ferrari pole position in Mexico

Hamilton claims Ferrari pole

Lewis Hamilton secured his 105th career pole position, the first since the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix, by beating George Russell by 0.009 seconds during the final stages of qualifying at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. This marks the veteran’s first pole for Ferrari in his second season with the team. Hamilton, aged 41, said, "Where there’s a will, there’s a way. It’s all in the mind. For sure, you might feel aches and pains, luckily I don’t, I do all those different things to keep myself young and fit. But I love what I do, and love is not gone." He previously won his debut race for Ferrari in Barcelona. While Hamilton took the day, Kimi Antonelli remains on course to win his first world championship. The 20-year-old Italian holds a 123-point lead over Russell and a 124-point lead over Hamilton. Antonelli will become the first Italian champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953 if he finishes ninth or higher on Sunday. Even if Russell or Hamilton wins the race to keep their championship hopes alive, Antonelli can still claim the title if he finishes ninth or higher.

Why did Verstappen lose time?

Max Verstappen finished fourth on the track but will start fifth because a one-place grid penalty follows his Friday practice clash with Liam Lawson. Verstappen blamed his loss of time on dirty air and traffic. He lost time entering Turn 12 because a car sat close to him. He also struggled at the hairpin where a car on his right forced him into an awkward angle. He said, "Plus you lose your reference on the right-hand side where you are constantly looking. It’s a difficult corner to get right, that killed my lap." George Russell took second place after Hamilton’s final charge. Russell decided not to complete a preparation lap on his final run. He said a "gut feeling" drove the decision, even though the team requested the extra mileage for fuel. He noted the time loss from the extra fuel weight was small but larger than the gap to pole. Lando Norris finished sixth after failing to improve his time on his final lap; he had previously been the fastest driver in the second session and third fastest during the first run of Q3. Charles Leclerc set a time of 1min 16.647sec to take third. Oscar Piastri finished thirteenth after failing to reach Q2 because of a lack of rear grip. The top ten includes Isack Hadjar, Arvid Lindblad, Pierre Gasly, and Liam Lawson.

Ocon removed from Haas

Haas replaced Esteban Ocon with Ryo Hirakawa for the remainder of the weekend. The team offered no explanation for the sudden decision to drop the 32-year-old Frenchman. Ocon admitted to a "difference in viewpoints" with race engineer Laura Muller during Friday’s second practice session. Ocon returned to the Haas garage without removing his helmet after the exchange. He rejected all media reports that the disagreement turned physical. He stated, "I categorically reject any reports or allegations suggesting that any form of physical violence was used to resolve any differences of any nature." He also said, "I strongly condemn violence in all its forms and firmly believe that disagreements should always be handled with professionalism and respect." Ocon will be replaced by Rafael Camara next season. Liam Lawson also faces a difficult Sunday after a disqualification from qualifying for an infringement regarding electrical deployment of the power unit. Lawson finished eighth in qualifying, but the disqualification will force him to start from the back. Fernando Alonso also faces a setback after an engine problem. A water leak in the energy recovery system forced his second qualifying attempt to stop on track. Alonso will start from the back. He confirmed the engine problem in a nine-word interview, noting it was "correct" that the car had been looking good all weekend but he could not race from the back.