Charles Leclerc started the Mexican Grand Prix on top by setting the fastest time in the opening practice session.
It was the fourth consecutive practice session headed by a Ferrari, after the team led all three sessions in Austin a week ago.The two Mercedes drivers came next, Andrea Kimi Antonelli leading Frederik Vesti, who took over from George Russell. Vesti lapped within a tenth of a second of the driver who can clinch the world championship on Sunday.
The majority of teams ran junior drivers in the opening practice session. Behind Lewis Hamilton, Ayumu Iwasa set the quickest time by any driver who did not use the soft tyres. Isack Hadjar in the other Red Bull ended the session outside the top 10 after being delayed by a power unit problem.
Pierre Gasly took sixth while Fernando Alonso put his Aston Martin much further up the times sheets than usual with the seventh-fastest time.
Oscar Piastri, the quickest McLaren driver, was only eighth. Leonardo Fornaroli, replacing Lando Norris for this session, struggled to brake as aggressively as he needed to at turn one, running wide during his soft tyre run.
Oliver Bearman and Arvid Lindblad completed the top 10. Formula 2 driver Nikola Tsolov became the first Bulgarian driver to participate in an official practice session and impressed by lapping a tenth of a second slower than the team’s regular driver.
Other newcomers had less smooth sessions. Audi sent Freddie Slater out of the garage with a fan assembly in his right-hand sidepod. He had to pit to have it removed, then return to the garage for a longer stay due to overheating. The stewards are investigating the team’s unsafe release of the car.
Jak Crawford, driving Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin, parked up with a technical problem after leaving the track at turn one.
Colton Herta ended the session at the bottom of the times but passed an important milestone. Completing 30 laps ensured he will reach the 40 superlicence points he needs in order to be allowed to race in Formula 1.
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2026 Brazilian Grand Prix first practice result
| P. | # | Driver | Team | Model | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | SF-26 | 1’18.128 | |
| 2 | 12 | Andrea Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | W17 | 1’18.787 | 0.659 |
| 3 | 72 | Frederik Vesti | Mercedes | W17 | 1’18.861 | 0.733 |
| 4 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | SF-26 | 1’18.866 | 0.738 |
| 5 | 36 | Ayumu Iwasa | Red Bull-Red Bull-Ford | RB22 | 1’19.113 | 0.985 |
| 6 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine-Mercedes | A526 | 1’19.210 | 1.082 |
| 7 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin-Honda | AMR26 | 1’19.357 | 1.229 |
| 8 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL40 | 1’19.376 | 1.248 |
| 9 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas-Ferrari | VF-26 | 1’19.412 | 1.284 |
| 10 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls-Red Bull-Ford | 03 | 1’19.478 | 1.350 |
| 11 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull-Red Bull-Ford | RB22 | 1’19.545 | 1.417 |
| 12 | 91 | Nikola Tsolov | Racing Bulls-Red Bull-Ford | 03 | 1’19.604 | 1.476 |
| 13 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | R26 | 1’19.608 | 1.480 |
| 14 | 62 | Gabriele Mini | Alpine-Mercedes | A526 | 1’19.946 | 1.818 |
| 15 | 50 | Ryo Hirakawa | Haas-Ferrari | VF-26 | 1’19.982 | 1.854 |
| 16 | 55 | Carlos Sainz Jnr | Williams-Mercedes | FW48 | 1’20.006 | 1.878 |
| 17 | 67 | Leonardo Fornaroli | McLaren-Mercedes | MCL40 | 1’20.235 | 2.107 |
| 18 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Cadillac-Ferrari | MAC-26 | 1’20.395 | 2.267 |
| 19 | 34 | Jak Crawford | Aston Martin-Honda | AMR26 | 1’20.803 | 2.675 |
| 20 | 46 | Luke Browning | Williams-Mercedes | FW48 | 1’20.869 | 2.741 |
| 21 | 98 | Freddie Slater | Audi | R26 | 1’20.945 | 2.817 |
| 22 | 25 | Colton Herta | Cadillac-Ferrari | MAC-26 | 1’21.365 | 3.237 |
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