Lewis Hamilton took his first Grand Prix pole position for Ferrari in qualifying for round 19 of the 2026 Formula 1 season in Mexico City. His 1:16.514 beat George Russell by just 0.009 seconds, with Charles Leclerc third. According to Formula 1, it was Hamilton’s 105th career pole and ended a three-year wait to top Grand Prix qualifying.
Just 0.193 seconds across the top five
Ferrari occupied two of the top three places, Leclerc’s 1:16.633 leaving him 0.119 seconds behind his team mate. Max Verstappen was fourth on 1:16.692 and Kimi Antonelli fifth, with only 0.193 seconds covering the top five. Isack Hadjar, Liam Lawson, Arvid Lindblad and Pierre Gasly finished seventh through tenth, behind Lando Norris in sixth.
The two contenders also completed their best laps close together. The FIA timing sheet records Russell’s 1:16.523 at 16:06:53 local time, followed 19 seconds later by Hamilton’s pole lap at 16:07:12. Formula 1 also reported a lock-up for Verstappen on his last lap.
McLaren disappoints; qualifying and grid positions differ
McLaren’s qualifying outcome contrasted sharply with its FP3 showing. Norris led Q2 on 1:16.728 but finished sixth in Q3 with a 1:16.824. Oscar Piastri managed only 1:17.646 in Q2 and was eliminated in thirteenth. Nico Hulkenberg finished eleventh, just 0.028 seconds behind Gasly’s Q3 cut-off time; Piastri missed that benchmark by 0.368 seconds.
Further back, Alex Albon was seventeenth and Fernando Alonso eighteenth. Formula 1 reported that Aston Martin told Alonso to abandon qualifying over a suspected water-pressure issue linked to the energy recovery system (ERS). Ryo Hirakawa finished nineteenth in his first F1 qualifying session, followed by Lance Stroll, Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.
Qualifying positions must be distinguished from race grid positions. The FIA gave Verstappen and Lawson a one-place grid drop each for the next race in which they compete, following their Turn 14 incident in FP2. The table retains all 22 drivers’ Q1, Q2 and Q3 times and total lap counts; the starting order must also account for penalties and the official grid.
Complete Mexico City qualifying classification
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | 1:17.341 | 1:16.953 | 1:16.514 | 20 |
| 2 | 63 | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:17.659 | 1:17.027 | 1:16.523 | 22 |
| 3 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 1:17.506 | 1:16.944 | 1:16.633 | 24 |
| 4 | 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | 1:17.942 | 1:16.876 | 1:16.692 | 14 |
| 5 | 12 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:17.918 | 1:17.133 | 1:16.707 | 24 |
| 6 | 1 | Lando Norris | McLaren | 1:17.733 | 1:16.728 | 1:16.824 | 21 |
| 7 | 6 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull Racing | 1:17.385 | 1:17.047 | 1:16.900 | 20 |
| 8 | 30 | Liam Lawson | Racing Bulls | 1:18.097 | 1:17.207 | 1:17.029 | 21 |
| 9 | 41 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | 1:18.210 | 1:17.135 | 1:17.117 | 21 |
| 10 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | 1:18.194 | 1:17.278 | 1:17.153 | 20 |
| 11 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | 1:17.868 | 1:17.306 | — | 19 |
| 12 | 43 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 1:18.517 | 1:17.640 | — | 14 |
| 13 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | 1:17.659 | 1:17.646 | — | 17 |
| 14 | 5 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | 1:17.727 | 1:17.680 | — | 19 |
| 15 | 87 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | 1:18.083 | 1:18.083 | — | 18 |
| 16 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 1:18.521 | 1:18.885 | — | 18 |
| 17 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams | 1:18.630 | — | — | 12 |
| 18 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | 1:18.908 | — | — | 4 |
| 19 | 50 | Ryo Hirakawa | Haas | 1:18.958 | — | — | 10 |
| 20 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | 1:19.072 | — | — | 10 |
| 21 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Cadillac | 1:19.105 | — | — | 9 |
| 22 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Cadillac | 1:19.852 | — | — | 9 |
