Hamilton rejects theory of Ferrari turbo advantage in Mexico

After Friday practice at the Mexico City Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton rejected the theory that Ferrari’s smaller turbo was giving the team an advantage at altitude. He said Mercedes and Red Bull remained faster at the ends of the straights, as they do at every race, and argued that the turbo was not making a difference.

The expected benefit was that Ferrari’s smaller turbo could shorten turbo lag—the delay between a demand for power and the turbo spooling up enough to deliver it. Mexico City is 2,285 metres above sea level, where air density is 25% lower than at sea level and turbos must work harder to force air into the engine. The 2026 power units also no longer have the MGU-H, which had helped eliminate turbo lag.

Charles Leclerc topped both Friday sessions, while Hamilton was fourth in FP1. Hamilton said his team told him to stop midway through FP2 after seeing a problem; he did not know its cause, although the car had felt strong until then. He estimated Ferrari was still losing two or three tenths, but said the car was fundamentally working well at tracks like Mexico.