Leclerc leads Mexico City practice as Antonelli closes in on first F1 title

Charles Leclerc set the fastest time in opening practice for the Mexico City Grand Prix, finishing 0.659 seconds ahead of Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli. According to BBC Sport, the Ferrari driver led a session in which most teams gave opportunities to rookies, while Antonelli began a weekend that could deliver his first world championship.

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Antonelli needs to finish ninth on Sunday to guarantee the title, whatever his remaining challengers achieve. Only a win for Mercedes team-mate George Russell or Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton can keep the championship unresolved. If Russell wins, ninth is sufficient for Antonelli; if Hamilton wins, the Italian needs only 10th place to become champion.

Russell did not drive in the opening session. Mercedes reserve Frederik Vesti took his car and finished third, ahead of Hamilton in fourth. Ferrari were the only team to field both regular race drivers, with the other 10 teams using the session to fulfil part of their mandatory rookie running requirements.

BBC Sport reported that Mexico City's opening practice is a popular choice for those appearances because a dirty track surface typically makes the session unrepresentative. That left the first timesheet with a different mix of drivers from the usual race line-up, including Vesti in the top three and another reserve immediately behind the two Ferraris and two Mercedes.

Ayumu Iwasa, replacing Max Verstappen at Red Bull for the session, was fifth. Alpine's Pierre Gasly finished sixth and Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso seventh. Oscar Piastri was eighth for McLaren, followed by Haas driver Oliver Bearman in ninth and Racing Bulls' Arvid Lindblad in 10th.

Freddie Slater's first grand prix weekend outing for Audi was restricted by reliability problems. He completed 14 laps, roughly half the normal mileage, but returned to the track for approximately the final 20 minutes and finished 19th. Fellow Briton Luke Browning, making another practice appearance for Williams, was immediately ahead of him.

Cadillac's Colton Herta ended the session 22nd. The team believe his accumulated mileage is now sufficient to secure the 40 points required for an F1 superlicence, BBC Sport reported. That assessment remained the team's position, rather than confirmation in the report that the licence had been awarded.