Lando Norris and Kimi Antonelli were near-inseparable in final practice for Formula 1's Mexican Grand Prix as Ferrari's pace faltered ahead of qualifying.
๐ The Core Development
Friday pacesetter Charles Leclerc ultimately ended up third for Ferrari, but only at the end of the session following aborted attempts at his qualifying simulation on soft tyres.
He and team-mate Lewis Hamilton - whose session played out in a similar way - had traded fastest times at the beginning of FP3 as the top teams all chose to start the session on medium tyres.
๐ Background & Sector Context
Mercedes was among the first of the frontrunners to switch to softs and while George Russell pondered whether a double-prep lap was necessary, telling the team to consider telling Antonelli to push after a single warm-up lap, Antonelli did complete two prep laps and duly went fastest with a 1m17.601s.
That looked as though it would stand as the session's best time until Norris improved with two minutes left of the hour-long session, going one thousandth quicker for McLaren.
๐ Industry & Real-World Impact
Leclerc was 0.117s back in third, suggesting the Ferrari will remain a contender for pole in qualifying, while Oscar Piastri ended the session within two tenths of his pacesetting McLaren team-mate in fourth.
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๐ฎ Strategic Outlook & What Lies Ahead
Max Verstappen complained of brake issues late on and was three and a half tenths down in fifth ahead of Hamilton, with less than seven hundredths covering the Ferrari in sixth and Arvid Lindblad at the back of the top 10, as Racing Bulls again had both drivers inside the theoretical Q3 cutoff.
Lindblad and ninth-fastest Lawson were well clear of their midfield rivals, with Nico Hulkenberg four tenths further back for Audi ahead of Alpine duo Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso's Aston Martin.
