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Oscar Piastri was knocked out in Q2 of Mexico City Grand Prix qualifying after a fresh set of soft tires gave him no grip, leaving the McLaren driver 13th on the grid in a surprise exit. A mistake at Turn 7 forced him to abandon his first lap on new tires, and Piastri said Q2 was “bizarre,” adding that he was “not sure what happened” after the balance of his car felt completely different on his next attempt. He said he would focus on making up positions and trying to get into the points on Sunday.

Lando Norris salvaged sixth on the grid after a mistake on his final Q3 lap, even though he had briefly gone to the top of Q2 for McLaren. Norris said the team was “too slow,” that he could not repeat a “magical” Q2 lap in Q3 and that the car was difficult to put together, with McLaren losing time “every corner” and about two-tenths in the first three corners. Both McLaren drivers said overtaking would be very difficult in Sunday’s race.

The poor qualifying day capped a mixed run for McLaren at the high-altitude Mexico City circuit. The team used FP1 for tests and experiments with reserve driver Leonardo Fornaroli, with Piastri eighth in that session and 10th in FP2, while Norris was second in FP2 behind Charles Leclerc. Piastri said his soft-tyre lap was “scruffy” and “pretty messy,” called Ferrari “very strong” and said McLaren looked “okay,” with plenty still to learn before qualifying. McLaren’s result marked its worst qualifying performance of 2026.

Kimi Antonelli went into the Mexico City Grand Prix still dealing with a viral illness and the pressure of leading the Formula 1 title race, with the 20-year-old Mercedes driver saying he had a high fever and stomach problems earlier in the week and was not fully recovered by qualifying. Mercedes said Antonelli would miss Thursday’s media obligations because of the illness, and the FIA excused him from mandatory media duties so he could rest. Antonelli could clinch the championship with a ninth-place finish on Sunday.

Antonelli said the lingering illness and constant title talk left him feeling “tense” and “tired” in qualifying, and that he struggled to find confidence and put together a clean lap on new tires in Q3. He qualified fourth, the slower of the two Mercedes drivers, 0.184 seconds behind George Russell.

Looking ahead to Sunday, Antonelli said Mercedes still had a good chance if he made a strong start into Turn 1 and avoided trouble, though he said Ferrari still had the stronger race pace. He planned to rest before the race and hoped to sleep well and reset with his family at the circuit.

Liam Lawson and Racing Bulls were referred to the stewards after qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix over a possible technical infringement involving Lawson’s MGU-K, and Lawson faced possible disqualification from qualifying. Lawson and a Racing Bulls representative were summoned to meet the stewards at 5:30 p.m. local time.

FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer said Lawson’s car was below the minimum MGU-K power requirement just after Lawson crossed the line on his fastest Q2 lap. The issue involved the driver maximum power demand and ERS-K electrical DC power being reduced faster than allowed, under Articles C5.12.6 and C5.12.7 of the technical regulations. Technical violations are typically treated as black-and-white matters and can lead to disqualification.

Lawson had qualified eighth for the Mexican Grand Prix, but he was provisionally set to start ninth because of a one-place grid penalty from his Friday clash with Max Verstappen. Verstappen also received a one-place grid penalty after the collision, leaving Verstappen fifth and Lawson ninth on the grid.

Lewis Hamilton took pole position for Ferrari in Mexico City Grand Prix qualifying, edging George Russell by 0.009 seconds to secure his first pole for the team and his first Grand Prix pole since the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix. It was Hamilton’s 105th career Formula 1 pole and gave Ferrari its first pole of the 2026 season.

Hamilton also extended his own Formula 1 record for the longest span between a first and last pole to 19 years, 4 months and 22 days, and became the oldest pole-sitter since Mario Andretti in 1982. Charles Leclerc qualified third for Ferrari, Max Verstappen qualified fourth but will start fifth because of a one-place grid penalty for a Friday collision with Liam Lawson, and Kimi Antonelli qualified fifth and will move up to fourth on the grid.

Qualifying for the Mexico City Grand Prix is set for 3 p.m. local time Saturday at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, with the session determining the starting grid for Sunday’s 71-lap race. Practice times pointed to a tight pole battle among Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren, while Kimi Antonelli can clinch the F1 drivers’ title in Sunday’s race if he finishes ninth or better.

Charles Leclerc topped both Friday practice sessions, leading FP2 with a 1:17.827 lap, 0.103 seconds ahead of Lando Norris and 0.106 ahead of George Russell. Antonelli finished fourth in FP2. In final practice, Norris was quickest with a 1:17.600 lap, finishing 0.001 seconds ahead of Antonelli. Leclerc was third, followed by Oscar Piastri, Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Russell. Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad completed the top 10.

Verstappen and Lawson each received a one-place grid penalty after their FP2 collision. Haas also made a change for the rest of the weekend, replacing Esteban Ocon with reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa.