Lando Norris proved competitive for McLaren on the first day of Mexico practice, keeping company with Red Bull and Max Verstappen.
The Mexican GP provides a variety of challenges for the F1 field, including high altitudes and a combination of medium and low-speed corners. Several teams were separated by a few tenths in qualifying simulations – a relatively common occurrence on shorter track layouts. Still, the unique characteristics of the Mexico City circuit could throw a spanner in the works.
Max Verstappen was fastest across in both sessions, wasting no time in the RB19. Red Bull will be favourites all weekend, but they are accompanied by McLaren. Specifically, the #4 machine of Lando Norris has shown strong pace in Mexico. McLaren has been consistently fast since the Austrian GP, often contending for podium finishes. This weekend should be no different.
However, Mercedes shouldn’t be written off. Whilst Norris posted the best long run times, the Silver Arrows were within touching distance in race simulations. Their low-fuel runs weren’t especially impressive, but Mercedes will likely turn up their engines for qualifying.
Ferrari’s pace was largely opposite to that of the German team. Low-fuel runs on the soft tyres were competitive, but race pace could be an issue – especially in terms of tyre degradation. Still, they should be close enough to contend at the front – especially on Saturday.
Closely matched field
Perhaps the biggest question from Friday’s practice was Aston Martin, who were largely anomalous on the time sheets. The Silverstone-based outfit continues to tinker with its latest upgrade package. Fernando Alonso was on track for promising laps in FP1 and FP2, but mistakes meant he didn’t set a representative time. Race simulations weren’t very encouraging, either. Still, their recovery in Austin suggests it’s worth observing their progress in FP3 and qualifying.
Valtteri Bottas, Alex Albon and Daniel Ricciardo were the stand-outs from the midfield on Friday. All drivers set times to go into the top 10, as the fight for P8 in the standings continues to intensify. Esteban Ocon showed that Alpine can fight for points this weekend, showing consistently strong pace on both low and high-fuel runs.
As seen throughout 2023, qualifying should be a close and exciting session. Sunday should again be Verstappen territory, although there are plenty of contenders ready to capitalise on any errors.
