Hamilton: Ferrari 'really close' to Mexico pole fight despite straight-line deficit

Lewis Hamilton says Ferrari can realistically fight for pole at the Mexican Grand Prix after Charles Leclerc led both of Friday's practice sessions, though he pushed back on the theory that the team's power unit enjoys a decisive advantage in Mexico City's thin air.

Why it matters:

Ferrari arrived as the paddock's favourite for the weekend, with its smaller turbocharger expected to cope better with altitude than its rivals. Leclerc backing that up with P1 in both sessions gives the Scuderia genuine momentum — and timely momentum at that, with Mercedes holding a 133-point lead in the constructors' championship and able to seal the title this weekend.

The details:

• Leclerc set the pace in FP1 and FP2, handing Ferrari a clean sweep of Friday's timing screens.
• Hamilton's second session was compromised by an issue that cost him his high-fuel long run, leaving him to estimate race setup — rear wing, braking and balance — from rivals' data.
• Even on his quickest lap, Hamilton said he was "losing power in a few places," dropping roughly three tenths. "Underlying is a really good car this weekend," he added.
• George Russell argued Ferrari's smaller turbo could be "quite an advantage" at altitude. Hamilton disagreed: "If you look at the speeds to the Mercedes and the Red Bull, they're still quick at the end of the straights... the turbo is just not making a difference." He reckons Ferrari is still giving away two to three tenths on the straights.
• Oscar Piastri largely backed that up, suggesting the Ferrari had looked "a bit slow on the straights."

What's next:

Hamilton expects qualifying to be tight but warned that rivals typically find another step overnight. "Honestly feels like we could be really close to beating them for quali," he said. Without long-run data, though, Ferrari's race-day setup remains something of an educated guess.