Ferrari begins Mexico City weekend strong as Leclerc leads Antonelli

The session began with drivers completing laps on the hard tyres, except for the two Racing Bulls, who opted for mediums. After the first 15 minutes, Ferrari's Leclerc led the session with a time of 1:19.1, ahead of Antonelli.

The drivers began using the soft tyres as the session reached its halfway point. Leclerc then improved to a 1:18.1, which was around two tenths quicker than the fastest lap in FP1 in 2025.

During the final minutes of the session, no one managed to better Leclerc's best lap time. Antonelli finished around six and a half tenths of a second behind the Monegasque driver. Lewis Hamilton, in the other Ferrari, had the fourth-fastest time in FP1.

There was a single incident during the opening session of the weekend. With around 11 minutes to go, Aston Martin's Jak Crawford stopped on track, which led to a brief Virtual Safety Car period.

As has been the case over the past few seasons, every team bar Ferrari has fielded a rookie for FP1 in Mexico City.

Out of the rookies, Mercedes' Vesti set the best time with a 1:18.861. Ayumu Iwasa, replacing Verstappen in the RB22, set the fifth-best time.