Michael Bailey·Live Reporter
Mexico GP: Start times, news, how to watch
Formula One is in Mexico for round 20 of the 2024 world championship at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
- Today: FP1 starts 2.30pm ET (7.30pm BST); FP2 follows from 6pm ET (11pm BST).
- Watch: ESPN (US), Sky Sports (UK)
- Next: FP3 and qualifying take place on Saturday, ahead of Sunday’s race.
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Alonso: Reaching 400 demonstrates my love for racing
An emotional weekend for Alonso as he extends his record for most F1 races to 400. He was asked what it means to him.
💬 "To reach 400 now is a big number. It’s a way of demonstrating my passion for the sport and for F1.
"Knowing that no one reached that number in the past, maybe someone does in the future, but not many, let’s say a group of five or 10 maximum, it just demonstrates my love for racing, for F1, how much I enjoy this lifestyle, motor racing in general.”
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Russell: There were glimmers of a really strong performance last week
George Russell was disappointed with a sixth-place finish in Austin last week while team-mate Lewis Hamilton spun off the track in the second lap. The younger of the two evaluated the U.S. Grand Prix.
💬 "Having reviewed everything as a team, I think we were just sailing too close to the wind. We know how aggressively you need to set up for this era of cars, how low to the ground you need to run them, how stiff you need to run them, and I think clearly it caught both myself and Lewis out over the weekend.
"On the flip side, there were definitely glimmers of really strong performance in there. We know we need to be more conservative with the set-up. That may hinder the performance so we’re going into this weekend with an open mind."
Verstappen: 'I just follow the rules as much as I can'
Talk about Norris' penalty continued to be high on the agenda on Thursday and Max Verstappen was emphatic in his reponse.
💬 "At the end of the day, you cannot overtake outside of the white line. That’s a very clear rule and I’ve been done by it myself.
"I don’t understand why suddenly now we need to ask and scream for changes in the regulation when it’s been like that forever. I grew up go-karting, F3, F1, you know that you cannot pass outside of the white line. It’s as simple as that.
"It’s how the rules are written. I didn’t make the rules, first of all, I just follow the rules as much as I can. Of course, sometimes you get caught out with it, we’ve had that in the past. I just implement the rules and play with them."
Leclerc: 'Mexico should be quite a good track for us'
Charles Leclerc was back on the champion's step last weekend and he seems hopeful that he and the rest of the Ferrari team will be able to recreate that success this time around.
💬 "It's very difficult to predict this season race by race. Last weekend went extremely well for us. We were particularly strong in races and in race pace. In qualifying, we struggled a little bit more.
"However, on paper, Mexico should be quite a good track for us. But that doesn't mean we'll reproduce the kind of performance we've done in Austin – we just need to focus on ourselves."
Norris: I've got to be at Max's level
Lando Norris is under no illusions of the size of the task facing him between now and the end of the season. He knows that overthrowing Max Verstappen at the top of the leaderboard is a tall order, but it's one he is ready for.
💬 "I think Max is probably the best, and I’ll probably say quite confidently, he’s the best in the world in this style of defence and attacking, and those kind of things. I’m going up against the best in the world and therefore I’ve got to be at his level.
"At the minute I would say I’m not quite at the level I need to be at, and his level. It’s a shame to say, but it’s probably the truth. At the same time, it’s an experience for me to learn and progress and try and do better."
And here's McLaren's statement in response
💬 "We acknowledge the Stewards’ decision to reject our petition requesting a Right of Review. We disagree with the interpretation that an FIA document, which makes a competitor aware of an objective, measurable and provable error in the decision made by the stewards, cannot be an admissible 'element' which meets all four criteria set by the ISC, as specified in Article 14.3. We would like to thank the FIA and the stewards for having considered this case in a timely manner. We will continue to work closely with the FIA to further understand how teams can constructively challenge decisions that lead to an incorrect classification of the race."
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FIA dismisses McLaren's right of review
McLaren’s bid to get the stewards to review the controversial incident between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, including Norris’ penalty, from the United States Grand Prix has been dismissed.
The stewards met Friday an hour after the conclusion of FP1 in Mexico City and discussed the Woking-based team’s Right of Review. Norris was dinged for leaving the track and gaining an advantage when he overtook Verstappen late in the race outside of track limits.
That moment and the subsequent penalty led to numerous drivers speaking out about the lack of clarity around racing rules, as well as a lack of consistency with the stewards.
McLaren said in a statement Thursday, “We believe there is a significant and new element that was unavailable to us at the time the decision was made.”
However, the stewards determined “there is no relevant new element.”
Fellow drivers pay tribute to Alonso's quadruple century
Alonso's 400th Grand Prix was something brought up to plenty of the other drivers ahead of this weekend's track action.
- Verstappen: "I never thought anyone would go to 400. Back in the day, you know, when you hit 100 or 150 that was already a really good achievement in your career. To hit 400 is crazy."
- Sainz: "Happy birthday – if you can call it like that. 400 races is a lot of races! It makes me think that I’ve done 200, to put another 200 on top is a lot."
- Russell: "Real inspiration, because he’s gone on for so long, he’s been performing at the highest level for all of these years and that gives me the motivation and inspiration that I can achieve the same. So, I’ve spoken a bit about it with him, you know, ‘what’s the secret?’ He takes incredible care of himself so it’s definitely impressive.”
- Stroll: “Respect. It’s a lot of racing, and he’s still extremely hungry and competitive and fast – that’s what it comes down to. Chapeau!”
What we learned from FP2 in Mexico City
This is perhaps the toughest weekend of the season to properly judge second practice due to the Pirelli tire test that had prescribed tires, fuel loads, and run plans. Sainz and Leclerc in P1 and P4 points to something good for Ferrari, but with Yuki Tsunoda in P3, the picture is clearly not fully accurate.
Instead, it's easier to say who isn't cooking after FP2. Max Verstappen managed just four laps due to his engine issue, meaning he has serious ground to make up through the remainder of practice on Friday. George Russell also only got four on the board before his crash, which Mercedes' mechanics will be tasked with repairing overnight. Alex Albon didn't even make it out at all for Williams.
A clearer picture should emerge through final practice on Saturday. But for now, it looks to be advantage Ferrari in Mexico City.
And that's that for FP2
Carlos Sainz tops FP2. For those keeping track of the title fight, Lando Norris finished fifth and Max Verstappen dealt with power unit issues all session.
Yuki Tsunoda?
Question mark? Here I was thinking his P3 in FP1 was an anomaly, but here he is, at the end of a 90-minute FP2, sitting P3 again. RB did bring upgrades this weekend.
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Ferrari always anticipated this could be a strong weekend
It's a tricky session to assess, given the tire testing requirements, but seeing Carlos Sainz in P1 and Charles Leclerc in P4 isn't a huge surprise. The team always identified this as being a track where it could go well, given how it has performed at other high-downforce tracks this year. The high altitude here means all teams run their maximum downforce package and still manage to run higher top speeds than Monza due to the thin air.
30 minutes to go
Here's a look at the timings so far.
Russell 'physically OK' after high-speed crash in FP2
Mercedes has said that George Russell is back at the team's hospitality unit following his big crash early in FP2. The team has said that he is "physically OK, but it was a big impact," which meant he had to be checked and cleared at the medical center before returning to the team.
This really hasn't been a good day for Verstappen
At a time when Verstappen needs to build up confidence with the Austin upgrades, which appeared to have the desired effect in at least helping ease some of his balance issues, to have so little running in FP2 is not a great sign. The nature of the tire test in FP2 means it's going to be tricky to deduce which teams are or aren't in good shape, but there's no getting away from the fact that lack of running will hurt Verstappen.
Remembering when Friday practice sessions were always 90 minutes
Yep, seriously, that used to be a thing in F1 until the end of the 2020 season. Teams were happy to cut back on practice time. Although they would always take more, there was an acceptance that three hours on a Friday was probably too much, leading to the drop to two 60-minute sessions.
As someone who feels we have too much practice anyway in F1, this 90-minute session feels like a bit of a drag!
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More problems for Verstappen
He's told to box the car immediately for the "same problems" as before. Power unit.
Carlos Sainz goes tops
He's been ultra-quick the last two weeks. This is the second session today he's spent around the top of the timing sheet.
Back to green!
Cars are heading back out onto the track. A real line of them. Almost as if we've had very little time to log laps today ...