Hamilton takes Mexico pole, extends record to 105
The British driver beat George Russell and Charles Leclerc in qualifying, setting up a race that could see Kimi Antonelli become the youngest champion in F1 history.
By Julia Wang ·
Lewis Hamilton will start on the front row in Mexico, a position that extends his Formula 1 record for pole positions to 105. The seven time world champion beat Mercedes driver George Russell and Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc during Saturday qualifying at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez. Hamilton called the result special, noting it was his first pole for Ferrari in Mexico.
The result follows a difficult Friday for the British driver. He suffered a power loss during the second practice session that forced him to retire from the track. Despite that setback, he managed to fine tune the car setup over the weekend. Hamilton, 41 years and a few months old, became the fifth oldest driver to secure a pole position in F1 history. The previous benchmark was set by Mario Andretti in 1982 at age 42. Nino Farina still holds the all time age record at 47.
For the Ferrari team, this marks their first pole position since Hungary last year. That gap spans 30 races. Hamilton is looking to become the first Ferrari driver to win a race from pole since Carlos Sainz achieved that feat in Mexico in 2024. The British driver has won the Mexican Grand Prix twice in the past.
The championship picture remains tight for Mercedes. Kimi Antonelli, the 20 year old Italian, qualified fifth. He won the United States Grand Prix last week from pole. Antonelli can finish as low as ninth in Sunday's race to break Sebastian Vettel's record for the youngest world champion. Vettel won his first title at age 23. Antonelli has won nine Grand Prix this season, while Russell, who started the year as the number one driver and won in Australia, has not won since.
If Antonelli clinches the title, he would become the first Italian world champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953. Mercedes could also secure the constructors' title on Sunday for the first time since 2021.
Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin faced a difficult session. The Spanish driver was eliminated after completing just four laps in the first qualifying session. Race control told him to stop just short of the pit lane entry. Alonso expressed frustration over the radio, stating he was only 100 meters from the pit lane. This adds to a string of bad luck for Alonso in Mexico, where he has failed to finish the last four races.
Local favorite Sergio Perez qualified 21st. Valterri Bottas placed 22nd, meaning the new Cadillac team occupied the final two positions on the grid.
