Norris edges Antonelli by 0.001s in Mexico GP final practice to set up title showdown

Lando Norris edged championship leader Kimi Antonelli by just 0.001 seconds in third and final practice at the Mexico Grand Prix on Saturday, topping the timesheets at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez ahead of a finely balanced qualifying session.

Antonelli had set the early benchmark with a 1m17.601s lap on soft tyres, going purple in sector one on a subsequent run before failing to improve. That left the door open for the reigning world champion Norris, who clocked a 1m17.600s to claim top spot and carry the fastest time of the entire weekend into qualifying.

Charles Leclerc found a late improvement to finish third, 0.117 seconds back, with McLaren’s Oscar Piastri fourth. Max Verstappen was fifth, 0.351s adrift, reporting brake struggles throughout the session. Lewis Hamilton ended up sixth, over four tenths behind Norris, after an untidy third sector, with George Russell seventh and Isack Hadjar eighth — the Red Bull junior bluntly describing his car as the worst he had driven all weekend.

The session’s opening phase was dominated by medium-tyre runs, with Hamilton and Leclerc trading fastest laps before the field switched to softs. Hamilton had missed significant running in FP2 with engine trouble, but came to the fore just before the halfway mark with a 1m18.162s to lead the medium-tyre phase, followed by Leclerc and Antonelli, while both Red Bull and McLaren appeared a clear step behind at that stage.

A subplot ran throughout the session involving Ryo Hirakawa, the 32-year-old Toyota-backed driver making his Formula 1 practice debut in the Haas. Hirakawa replaced Esteban Ocon for the remainder of the Mexico weekend after the Frenchman was benched by the team following a heated exchange with his race engineer during FP2. The precise reasons for Ocon’s removal have not been fully clarified by the squad.

Antonelli also voiced frustration during the session, complaining over the radio about being impeded by Verstappen at Turn 1 during his flying lap.

With all four leading constructors covered by less than four tenths of a second, the high-altitude Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez appears set to produce another closely fought qualifying battle as the 2026 championship picture continues to take shape.