Hamilton takes pole in Mexico GP qualifying, Russell 0.009 seconds behind

Lewis Hamilton took pole position at the Mexican Grand Prix from Ferrari's pair, setting a time of 1:16.514 in Q3 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. He beat Mercedes' George Russell by just 0.009 seconds. The race starts at 23:00 Turkish time on Sunday, 1 November.

Mexico GP qualifying results

Charles Leclerc qualified third, 0.119 seconds behind Hamilton. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) was fourth, and championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) fifth. Lando Norris (McLaren) took sixth and Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) seventh. Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad, both of RB F1 Team, completed the top 10 alongside Pierre Gasly (Alpine).

According to The Race, Hamilton, aged 41, became the oldest pole-sitter since Mario Andretti, who was 42 when he took pole in 1982. The pole also lifted Hamilton's own record to 105. It is Ferrari's first pole of the 2026 season. Hamilton missed the entry to Turn 10 on his first Q3 lap but beat Russell's time on his final attempt. Leclerc also lost time after sliding through the same corner.

Verstappen's final lap was ruined by a locked front brake at Turn 13. The Race reported that Red Bull's braking problems at that corner recurred, and Hadjar also had trouble at the same point. Verstappen faces a one-place grid penalty for an incident with Lawson on Friday. When Lawson's penalty is applied, he will swap places with Lindblad.

Piastri knocked out in Q2

Oscar Piastri (McLaren) was eliminated in 13th place in Q2, failing to reach Q3 for the first time since the 2024 Mexican GP. He said the rear tyres had no grip. His teammate Norris set the fastest Q2 lap at 1:16.728.

In Q2, Nico Hülkenberg (Audi) was 11th, Franco Colapinto (Alpine) 12th, Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) 14th, Oliver Bearman (Haas) 15th and Carlos Sainz (Williams) 16th. In Q1, Alexander Albon finished 17th, Fernando Alonso 18th, Ryo Hirakawa 19th, Lance Stroll 20th, Sergio Pérez 21st and Valtteri Bottas 22nd.

Alonso stopped on track in Q1 with a water pressure problem, which he believed was linked to the ERS, and said the team had missed a big opportunity. Hirakawa drove for Haas in place of Esteban Ocon. Pérez, racing on home soil, beat his Cadillac teammate Bottas by more than seven tenths of a second.