Mexico City GP FP2: Leclerc fastest as Hamilton stops and Verstappen clashes with Lawson

Charles Leclerc completed a Friday practice sweep at the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix, setting the fastest time in FP2 as Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton stopped with a loss of power and Max Verstappen collided with Liam Lawson.

Leclerc’s lap of 1min 17.827sec at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on 30 October put him 0.103sec ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris. George Russell was just another 0.003sec behind in third, leaving the leading three separated by little more than a tenth.

Championship leader Kimi Antonelli finished fourth for Mercedes, ahead of Verstappen and Isack Hadjar. The close margins at the front contrasted with a disrupted afternoon elsewhere, with technical problems and two separate interruptions affecting preparations.

Leclerc leads, but Hamilton loses running

Having topped FP1 with a 1min 18.128sec lap, Leclerc improved his benchmark in the second session. His first attempt on soft tyres did not deliver the pace he wanted, but a subsequent run took him to the top.

Norris briefly led following the restart after a red flag, before Leclerc secured the fastest time. Russell also improved on his second flying run to finish narrowly behind the McLaren.

Hamilton’s session ended around halfway through after he reported a loss of power. Motorsport Week quoted him telling Ferrari: “Something is wrong with the power, I lost all power through Turn 13.” His engineer instructed him to stop the car.

Hamilton parked trackside, prompting a brief Virtual Safety Car period, and took no further part. The precise cause of the problem was not established in the supplied reports.

Verstappen and Lawson clash brings red flag

The session was also halted after Verstappen and Lawson made contact in the stadium section, leaving debris on the circuit. Both drivers were able to continue.

According to GPFans, stewards subsequently handed each driver a one-place grid penalty for Sunday’s race, along with one penalty point on their licences.

The report quoted the stewards as saying Verstappen had been on a preparation lap and Lawson on a cool-down lap ahead of another push lap. After hearing from both drivers and their teams and reviewing video, the stewards judged their behaviour unacceptable, particularly following a warning at the team managers’ meeting earlier that day.

The penalties add a consequence beyond the lost practice time, although both drivers’ eventual starting positions will also depend on qualifying.

Piastri struggles as technical issues disrupt teams

Oscar Piastri finished tenth with a best lap of 1min 18.469sec, unable to match Norris despite taking part in both Friday sessions. Norris had sat out FP1 while Leonardo Fornaroli drove his McLaren as part of the team’s rookie allocation.

Both McLaren drivers locked up at Turn 1 during FP2. Norris recovered to produce the second-fastest lap, while Piastri continued to struggle under braking. A later attempt on soft tyres ended without an improvement after he lost the rear at the final corner and caught the slide.

Gabriel Bortoleto’s Audi was delayed by a technical issue before he finally joined the session on medium tyres in the final ten minutes. At Haas, Esteban Ocon reported a power-steering problem, while Oliver Bearman returned to the garage after an early excursion. Haas attributed Bearman’s trouble to a software issue, and he was soon back on track.

Friday therefore left Leclerc with the strongest headline result, but Ferrari’s interrupted running with Hamilton and the narrow gaps behind its leading car left plenty unresolved before qualifying.