Charles Leclerc delivered a commanding display on Friday at the Mexico City Grand Prix, topping both practice sessions and putting Ferrari firmly in the mix heading into qualifying. The Scuderian showed serious pace in FP1 with a 1:18.128, then bettered it in FP2 with a 1:18.257 to maintain his stranglehold on the timesheets. It was a strong statement from Leclerc, though the real talking point came when things got properly spicy out on track during the afternoon session.
More F1 news: Leclerc On Top in Mexico FP2 as Verstappen and Lawson Clash at Turn One
Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson gave us all a preview of how tense this championship fight's getting by absolutely going at it in the baseball section. Verstappen, who'd sat out FP1, was hunting for track position when he attempted a risky dive under braking at Turn 12 to get past the Racing Bulls driver. Lawson wasn't having any of it though, so when they tangled through Turns 13 and 14, Verstappen lost his cool and muscled his way across the runoff, bashing into Lawson's car and damaging both machines in the process. The stewards weren't impressed, summoning both drivers after the session to have a serious word about the incident.
More F1 news: Leclerc Quickest in Mexico City FP1 as Antonelli Eyes Championship Coronation
Andrea Kimi Antonelli finished second for Mercedes, just 0.302 seconds down, continuing his strong form as he edges closer to the championship. The Italian's really got momentum on his side and should be pushing hard for pole position. Lewis Hamilton also got on the board in a Mercedes that's clearly got plenty left in the tank, while Gabriel Bortoleto and Lance Stroll both had drama of their own to deal with, heading to the pits early due to mechanical gremlins.
More F1 news: Leclerc Quickest in Mexico FP1 as Ten Rookies Make F1 Debuts
The session saw some of the grid struggling with their machinery. Oliver Bearman had to take a fresh engine from his Haas pool after power issues struck in FP1, while Aston Martin handed Stroll a new battery when his car started playing up. Esteban Ocon reported total loss of power steering, and various drivers found themselves aquaplaning at Turn 1. It wasn't the smoothest Friday practice session, but when you've got Leclerc setting the pace and the Red Bull boys throwing hands, nobody's really bothered about the technical niggles.
Shop the collection: Max Verstappen merch • Charles Leclerc merch • Lewis Hamilton merch • Kimi Antonelli merch • Lance Stroll merch • Scuderia Ferrari merch • Red Bull Racing merch • Mercedes-AMG merch • Aston Martin merch • Haas merch • VCARB merch
0 comments