Hamilton earns first Ferrari pole in Mexico City

Lewis Hamilton has taken his first grand prix pole position for Ferrari at the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix.

Hamilton started his final Q3 lap in fourth and more than 0.4s down on teammate Charles Leclerc, who was quickest after the first runs.

George Russell, however, was first over the line among the contenders and rocketed to top spot by 0.124s, resetting the benchmark with a session-best middle split.

Hamilton’s reply was clean, and though none of his sectors were purple, three personal bests were enough to move him to the top spot by 0.009s.

Only Leclerc and Max Verstappen had the potential to beat his team, but a wobble for the Monegasque at Turn 10 scuppered his lap, while a lock-up for Verstappen at Turn 13 ensured pole position went to Hamilton.

“That felt great; that feels good” he said. “I’m so happy. I’m lost for words.

“It’s been a really, really tough, challenging weekend … but we‘ve really done a really good job with the setup over the weekend. We’ve really learned a lot from the last race [in Austin].

“It feels special to be in Mexico and get that.”

The result is a record-extending 105th pole for Hamilton, who at 41 years old is the oldest driver to start from pole position since Mario Andretti at the 1982 Italian Grand Prix. He’s the fifth-oldest pole-getter in Formula 1 history.

“When there’s a will, there’s a way,” he said. “It’s all in the mind, honestly, for all of us.”

Russell will start from the front row for the first time since taking pole at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

“It’s been a tricky few races for me,” he said. “I’m still struggling to get on top of this car, to be honest, because it’s been a very difficult weekend up until one lap in Q3.

“I know the performance is in there, but the hit rate is too low at the moment.

“That’s the frustration I have, but of course I’m happy with this front row.”

Leclerc was disappointed not to be able to finish the job from provisional pole halfway through Q3, lamenting a long-running Ferrari particularity with the soft tires.

“The out-laps were very difficult as well to put the tires in the right window,” he said. “In Q3 run 2 I had a clean out-lap, but the car felt very different compared to before, and I just didn’t do the job when I needed to.

“I’m a bit disappointed, but to start third here is I guess not too bad.”

Verstappen qualified fourth after scotching his final lap, though the Dutchman was never in contention for pole thanks to a one-place grid penalty imposed for his collision with Liam Lawson during Friday practice. He ended up 0.178s off the pace but will start fifth.

The penalty will promote title leader Kimi Antonelli to fifth after the Italian lapped 0.193s off the pace; his strategy to complete two build laps for his final time failed to deliver the hoped-for result.

Antonelli will guarantee himself the title if he finishes ninth or higher in Sunday’s race. If neither Hamilton nor Russell wins the race, Antonelli will win the championship regardless of his result.

Lando Norris qualified sixth, 0.31s off the pace, putting him 0.076s ahead of Isack Hadjar, whose first lap was lost to a mistake in the stadium section.

Lawson qualified eighth ahead of teammate Arvid Lindblad, but his one-place penalty for his role in the Verstappen practice incident will see them swap places ahead of Pierre Gasly, who qualified 10th. Nico Hulkenberg qualified 11th, missing out on the top 10 by just 0.028s.

Franco Colapinto was more than 0.3s further back in 12th, but that put him one place and 0.006s ahead of shock elimination Oscar Piastri.

Piastri had been competitive in Q1, but a run on used softs for his first Q2 run and then a poor first sector to start his final lap left him 13th.

“Mate, I don’t know what happened,” he radioed. “I had no rear grip.”

It’s the first time he’s failed to reach Q3 since the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix, when he was knocked out in Q1.

Gabriel Bortoleto qualified 14th ahead of Oliver Bearman and Carlos Sainz.

Alex Albon was eliminated 17th, missing out on Q2 by 0.109s.

Fernando Alonso set only one lap before being told to park his car on track owing to an energy recovery system issue. He was subsequently given a formal reprimand for not replacing his steering wheel after exiting the car.

Ryo Hirakawa, replacing Esteban Ocon for the rest of the weekend, qualified a commendable 19th for Haas, 0.114s ahead of Lance Stroll in the second Aston Martin.

Sergio Perez qualified 21st, only 0.033s behind Stroll and 0.747s ahead of Cadillac teammate Valtteri Bottas, who was due to start from the back of the grid regardless of his time owing to an engine change penalty.

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