Mexico (AFP) – The crossroads: English veteran Lewis Hamilton (41) snatched his first pole position with Ferrari on Saturday in Mexico, where young Italian Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) provided the essentials in order to win his first world title on Sunday.

Published on: 01/11/2026 - 06:27

After more than three years and three months of waiting, the seven-time champion finally tasted the joy of a pole position, the 105th of his career, the first with the Scuderia, which had not experienced such a celebration since August 2025.

"It's great, it feels good. I'm so happy, I can't find the words. It was a complex weekend with several problems yesterday (Friday). But we did a great job with the team on the settings of the car and that gave this pole", exulted Hamilton.

The Briton became the fifth oldest pole-sitter in F1 history. We have to go back more than 44 years to find an older driver capable of winning a pole position: it was the American Mario Andretti, then aged 42 and a half, during the 1982 Italian GP.

"It's a matter of state of mind. When you want, you can. I do everything I can to keep myself in shape and this love for what I do combined with the support I receive from all over the world helps me a lot. I hope to give a victory to my fans tomorrow (Sunday)", added Hamilton, winner of a Grand Prix this year, in Barcelona in June.

Antonelli in ambush

On the front row, he will be accompanied by his former teammate and compatriot George Russell (Mercedes), who has been in difficulty since the start of the weekend but who saw pole slip away from him by just nine thousandths of a second.

The two men are also the only drivers capable of delaying Antonelli's announced coronation. For this, one of them must absolutely win and hope that the Italian finishes beyond ninth place, a scenario which however seems unlikely given the consistency of the championship leader, who has only finished twice outside the Top 10 and has finished 16 times in the top five in 18 rounds this year.

Antonelli, who entered the weekend without being in the best form after being affected by a viral illness, will be lying in wait in fourth position and will be able to settle for becoming the youngest world champion in the history of Formula 1.

Fifth in qualifying behind Max Verstappen (Red Bull), the native of Bologna benefits from the penalty of one place on the grid which the Dutchman received after his collision on Friday with New Zealander Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), who received the same sanction.

"It wasn't my best qualifying. I struggled to find grip and I didn't manage to do the lap I wanted because I made a few small mistakes," Antonelli admitted. "It's disappointing, but I think we have a good chance of being able to fight for a good result on Sunday."

Ocon dismissed by Haas

On the French side, Isack Hadjar (Red Bull) will start in seventh position while Pierre Gasly (Alpine), who competed in a new Q3, will start tenth.

Esteban Ocon, however, did not participate in the second day of the Mexican GP after being sidelined by Haas in favor of Japanese reserve driver Ryo Hirakawa.

While rumors of a physical altercation that occurred on Friday evening between him and the team director, the Japanese Ayao Komatsu, circulated in the paddock on Saturday, the Frenchman “categorically” rejected these allegations on his social networks.

"Yesterday (Friday) evening, a divergence of points of view gave rise to a discussion between the parties concerned. While I recognize that this exchange did take place, I categorically reject reports or accusations according to which any form of physical violence was used to settle any disputes."

The Frenchman, who must leave the American team at the end of the season, may never get back on board a Haas single-seater after this incident.

nb/bfi

© 2026 AFP

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