Mexican Grand Prix – Free Practice 1: Mercedes narrowly dominate
Following a somewhat eventful session at the beginning, it is the two Mercedes cars that set the fastest times. Bottas finishes first just ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton, with Max Verstappen in third place.
The first 20 minutes
A hectic start to the session for Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez, as both drivers hit the barrier at the same spot, damaging their rear wings. After twenty minutes of racing, Hamilton is leading with a time of 1:20.085, followed by Verstappen (+0.129) and Gasly (+0.231). The Red Bull driver is on hard tires (white) while Gasly and Hamilton are on soft tires (red).
Peraltada BITES!
Both Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez slide backwards into the barrier and pick up some rear wing damage 😱#MexicoGP 🇲🇽 #F1 pic.twitter.com/ZM4Jzi5F1D
— Formula 1 (@F1) November 5, 2021
At midday
Sergio Perez returns to the track after 26 minutes of repairs to his car following his incident at the beginning of the session. Max Verstappen’s Red Bull has regained the lead of free practice 1 with a time of 1.18.464 closely followed by the two Mercedes of Bottas (+0.370) and Hamilton (+0.512). The three drivers are on soft tires.
The last 20 minutes
The Mercedes take the lead in these free practice 1 sessions, the Finn Valtteri Bottas finishes first with a time of 1:18.341 just ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton (+0.076) and Verstappen’s Red Bull (+0.123). The Frenchman Pierre Gasly delivers a good performance and ranks 5th.
See you at 10 pm for the second free practice session!
Timing ranking
| N° | Driver | Team | Times | Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bottas | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport | 1.18.341 | 28 | |
| 2 | Hamilton | Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport | 1.18.417 | +0.076 | 24 |
| 3 | Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | 1.18.464 | +0.123 | 28 |
| 4 | Perez | Red Bull Racing | 1.18.610 | +0.269 | 20 |
| 5 | Gasly | Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda | 1.18.985 | +0.644 | 23 |
| 6 | Sainz Jr. | Scuderia Ferrari | 1.19.463 | +1.122 | 26 |
| 7 | Alonso | Alpine F1 Team | 1.19.656 | +1.315 | 26 |
| 8 | Leclerc | Scuderia Ferrari | 1.19.667 | +1.326 | 20 |
| 9 | Ocon | Alpine F1 Team | 1.19.759 | +1.418 | 20 |
| 10 | Vettel | Cognizant Aston Martin Racing | 1.19.858 | +1.517 | 27 |
| 11 | Tsunoda | Scuderia AlphaTauri Honda | 1.20.011 | +1.670 | 30 |
| 12 | Räikkönen | Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN | 1.20.026 | +1.685 | 26 |
| 13 | Stroll | Cognizant Aston Martin Racing | 1.20.030 | +1.689 | 27 |
| 14 | Ricciardo | McLaren F1 Team | 1.20.273 | +1.932 | 25 |
| 15 | Norris | McLaren F1 Team | 1.20.301 | +1.960 | 26 |
| 16 | Giovinazzi | Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN | 1.20.344 | +2.003 | 27 |
| 17 | Russell | Williams Racing | 1.20.517 | +2.176 | 23 |
| 18 | Latifi | Williams Racing | 1.21.580 | +3.239 | 23 |
| 19 | Schumacher | Haas F1 Team | 1.22.144 | +3.803 | 27 |
| 20 | Mazepin | Haas F1 Team | 1.22.819 | +4.478 | 24 |
