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Formula 1
Mexico City GP
F1 Mexico GP Live Commentary and Updates - FP1 & FP2
Friday's action from the 19th round of the 2023 Formula 1 season.
Max Verstappen and Red Bull may have both championship crowns in the bag already, but there remains plenty to play for in Mexico.
After seeing his points advantage over Lewis Hamilton grow to 39 points through the Mercedes driver's disqualification in the United States, Sergio Perez will be keen to put on a show for his home fans and solidify his second position in the standings.
Ollie Bearman will make his F1 debut with Haas in the weekend's opening session, standing in for Kevin Magnussen, with Jack Doohan, Frederik Vesti, Theo Pourchaire and Isack Hadjar featuring for Alpine, Mercedes, Alfa Romeo and AlphaTauri respectively.
FP1 will get under way at 19:30pm BST with FP2 at 23:00pm BST.
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Summary
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Summary
- Max Verstappen leads FP2 timesheets over Lando Norris, completing a Friday clean sweep after edging Alex Albon in FP1
- Fernando Alonso survives lurid spin without damage, but brings up the rear in 20th on a difficult Friday for Aston Martin as Lance Stroll is hampered by issues with his left-front wheel
- Rain fell in the closing stages of FP2 to limit further improvements
- Pirelli completes prototype C4 tyre testing to evaluate tweaks for 2024
- Oliver Bearman, Frederik Vesti and Isack Hadjar complete first F1 weekend test mileage as fellow F2 racers Jack Doohan and Theo Pourchaire also log rookie laps
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Leaderboard
- Max Verstappen - Red Bull
- Lando Norris - McLaren
- Charles Leclerc - Ferrari
- Valtteri Bottas - Alfa Romeo
- Sergio Perez - Red Bull
- Daniel Ricciardo - AlphaTauri
- Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes
- Esteban Ocon - Alpine
- Oscar Piastri - McLaren
- George Russell - Mercedes
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Good evening and welcome to Mexico for FP1 at the Mexico City Grand Prix - the fourth-last race weekend of the season.
Breaking news
Much has recently been made of the 'rivalry' between Red Bull team-mates Verstappen and Perez. However, the former has labelled this as "made up".
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/bodyguard-protected-verstappen-feels-safe-in-mexico-amid-made-up-perez-f1-rivalry-/10538488/
https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/bodyguard-protected-verstappen-feels-safe-in-mexico-amid-made-up-perez-f1-rivalry-/10538488/
Another story that has carried over from the USGP is the disqualifications of Hamilton and Leclerc. Both drivers have taken different lines of attack this weekend, with Leclerc accepting the ruling and Hamilton seeming less-willing to let the matter lie.
FP1 will have a slightly odd look to it, with Ollie Bearman (Haas), Isack Hadjar (AlphaTauri), Frederik Vesti (Mercedes), Jack Doohan (Alpine) and Theo Pourchaire (Alfa Romeo) all taking part. Who will perform the best of the young drivers?
Breaking news
Key to all the teams running young talent is that costly mistakes are avoided. Haas are confident that Magnussen's car will be returned with all four wheels attached!
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With 10 minutes remaining before the session begins, the air temp is 22.1C, track temp is 36.2C and the wind speed is a barely noticeable 0.5m/s.
With blue skies up above, the risk of rain is - predictably - 0%!
With blue skies up above, the risk of rain is - predictably - 0%!
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The music has played and we're in the final moments before 20 F1 cars take to the track in Mexico!
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Lights green
The pitlane is open and we are go for FP1!
Alonso and Stroll lead the field out of the pitlane with Pirelli test tyres fitted to most cars.
Pirelli have provided a new construction of C4 tyre this weekend that teams are trialling in the early sessions. These tyres are in addition to the normal allocation.
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"The [brake] pedal feels strange," reports Pourchaire. He is pushed back into the garage as Alfa Romeo take a look at what could be wrong.
Stopwatch
An early local favourite at the top of the times, as Perez puts in an initial 1m23.935s.
Stopwatch
But that quickly changes as Piastri and then Ricciardo go faster - the AlphaTauri driver leading with a 1m23.555s.
More trouble for rookies as Bearman has a nasty lockup before Hadjar reports that his car has gone into anti-stall and returns to the pits.
Leclerc - currently P4 - has reported strange noises from his power unit when he applies the throttle. In thin air, engine trouble is always a concern.
A bizarre scene as Ricciardo opens his DRS and a piece of debris flies from his car. Piastri has reported this as 'a piece of metal' on the pit straight.
Stopwatch
Albon had been sitting pretty at the top of the times but Verstappen has now assumed his regular position. A 1m21.858 is the new benchmark.
The top three - Verstappen, Albon and Leclerc - are all on the test tyres.
The top three - Verstappen, Albon and Leclerc - are all on the test tyres.
Mechanical problem
A brief yellow flag as Sainz leaves the track. He is recovering to the pits but has lost all hydraulics. He can't change gear and has no power steering.
Stopwatch
Purple sectors one and two and, as Sainz is wheeled back, Perez goes fastest with a 1m21.596s. He is running the medium compound.
More engine concerns, this time from Norris. He reports the throttle was revving to the limit. Replays show this was happening in the pitlane. Bizarre.
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"Same issue guys, same issue," reports Pourchaire after returning to the track.
A nightmare session so far for the current F2 championship leader.
A nightmare session so far for the current F2 championship leader.
Stopwatch
A Red Bull one-two but not in the way that the locals would want. Verstappen leads with a 1m20.245s.
Verstappens effort was 1.3s faster than Perez's best effort. He is also 1.9s better off than the nearest non-Red Bull car - Leclerc.
The engine cover is off Sainz's car and there are some very concerned looks being shared.
But while we were looking at the Ferrari garage, Albon has returned his Williams to second fastest, just 0.004s off Verstappen.
Williams has an extremely slippery car and the early signs are looking good!
Williams has an extremely slippery car and the early signs are looking good!
'Third time lucky' is a normal phrase. But for Pourchaire, this isn't the case. The brake pedal is still long and he's ordered back to the pits. Only he and Alonso are yet to set a time.
Hamilton is on a personal best effort. Currently, he is P15 but has completed very little running.
Into the top 10 for Hamilton on the test tyre. He is two seconds off the pace.
Again showing strong pace are the two McLaren drivers, with Piastri currently P5 and Norris P6.
Of the young drivers, Bearman leads the way for Haas, in P10 - two places and two-tenths off Hulkenberg in the sister car.
Soft tyres are now the order of the day and we are about to get some proper qualifying simulations. Strap in!
Stopwatch
Norris completes his lap first and puts in a 1m20.237s but Verstappen immediately responds with a 1m19.718s to go comfortably clear once more.
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"I need to box. There is something loose between my legs," reports Verstappen. He's wheeled back and this should be a quick fix.
A moment for Bearman at T12 as he misses his braking points and makes use of the run-off area.
Alonso is finally on the track and has set times after being confined to the garage during the early stages. Doohan is now the slowest runner, although Pourchaire is yet to set a time.
Perez goes second fastest, climbing back past Norris. He remains two-tenths off Verstappen but is two-tenths clear of the third-placed McLaren driver.
By: Autosport Staff
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