Ferrari secured an impressive second place with Charles Leclerc and an eighth-place finish with Lewis Hamilton in the twentieth round of the 2025 Formula 1 season, held at the high-speed Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City. Charles Leclerc delivered a very strong performance, especially when considering the inherent limitations of the Ferrari SF-25 in terms of tire temperature management and overall thermal efficiency under extreme track conditions. With track temperatures reaching around fifty degrees Celsius during the race, Ferrari drivers were forced to slow their pace significantly earlier than would normally have been necessary, in order to prevent the car from overheating and risking a dramatic drop in performance. The Monegasque, in particular, demonstrated remarkable skill in managing his tires during the second stint of the race, successfully holding off Red Bull’s Max Verstappen over a lengthy forty-lap stint while running on medium compound tires.
Mexican Grand Prix, second stint: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc affected by soft tire drop; Max Verstappen delays his pit stop
At the start of the first stint, all drivers except Max Verstappen in his Red Bull began the race on soft tires. Charles Leclerc’s pace was approximately five-tenths of a second slower than Lando Norris in his McLaren, with the gap developing in a fairly consistent and linear fashion over the early laps. Despite this, the Monegasque driver showed excellent control of his car and managed temperatures very effectively during the opening laps. Even before the lights went out, the Ferrari team had instructed its drivers on when and where to perform lift and coast during the race in order to optimize tire longevity and prevent excessive wear.
During the course of the race, Ferrari engineer Bryan Bozzi requested that Charles Leclerc anticipate and increase the use of lift and coast in the key corners of the circuit, specifically corners one, four, and twelve. From a tire wear perspective, the 28-year-old driver experienced a significant drop in performance during the latter part of the first stint, particularly after completing the twentieth lap. Based on telemetry data analysis we can observe that Charles Leclerc’s lap times began to rise progressively, ultimately making him the slowest among the top-tier Formula 1 drivers at that stage of the race.
Lewis Hamilton, on the other hand, received different instructions from his race engineer Riccardo Adami. He was asked to execute a full lift and coast totaling over three hundred meters per lap throughout the circuit. Despite this, his pace remained similar to that of his Ferrari teammate, although he experienced a comparable drop in performance due to tire degradation. Notably, the decline in performance for Lewis Hamilton began approximately six laps earlier than for Charles Leclerc, making the first segment of the race particularly challenging for the seven-time Formula 1 world champion.
Max Verstappen, driving the Red Bull RB21, was approximately eight-tenths of a second slower than Lando Norris over the early laps, primarily due to a lack of rear grip. This issue stemmed from excessively high temperatures within the brake ducts, which affected the overall balance of his car. As a result, the Dutchman was also required to perform lift and coast, though less aggressively than the Ferrari drivers. Only towards the final portion of his stint did Red Bull race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase allow Max Verstappen to ease off the lift and coast management, enabling him to run a more consistent and controlled pace during the closing laps of his first stint.
Despite managing his tires carefully, Max Verstappen lost around two and a half seconds due to a delayed pit stop, which prevented him from mounting a closer and more competitive battle with Charles Leclerc in the final laps of the race. Lando Norris, meanwhile, had an exceptionally clean first stint, though he experienced a slight drop in performance due to thermal degradation after completing lap twenty. Nevertheless, the British driver was able to capitalize on one of the inherent strengths of the McLaren MCL39: its low tire consumption in high-temperature conditions, which allowed him to maintain a competitive pace relative to his rivals despite the challenging track conditions.
Mexican Grand Prix, second stint: Charles Leclerc struggles over a demanding forty-lap stint
During the second part of the Mexican Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton was one of the first drivers to make a pit stop, which also included serving a pre-existing time penalty. On medium compound tires, the Briton appeared relatively comfortable and able to maintain a consistent pace, although he still faced a gap of over one second to Max Verstappen, who was running on more favorable soft tires. Data on tire degradation during this stint shows that Lewis Hamilton successfully stabilized his tire temperatures over the nine laps preceding his pit stop, managing to sustain a steady and reliable pace despite the high track temperatures and associated thermal challenges.
Charles Leclerc, in contrast, posted an average pace that was approximately four-tenths of a second faster than that of Lewis Hamilton during the same segment. At the beginning of the stint, Charles adopted an extremely cautious approach, following instructions from Ferrari that he would not make any additional pit stops. This careful approach resulted in a gradual decrease in lap times as the stint progressed. When compared to Lando Norris, the Ferrari man was still four-tenths slower per lap, a difference largely attributable to slightly less effective tire management over the course of the stint.
Even during the second stint, the Ferrari pit wall repeatedly communicated instructions to Charles Leclerc regarding lift and coast management. Despite these frequent interventions, Leclerc was able to maintain a reasonably consistent pace through the middle portion of the stint, experiencing only a minor drop in performance during the closing laps. The primary challenge for the Monegasque driver came from Max Verstappen, who, running on soft tires during the second stint, managed to recover a significant nineteen-second gap on the Monegasque while running lap times approximately seven-tenths faster.
Max Verstappen successfully closed most of the distance after lap fifty-one, at a point when Charles Leclerc’s performance had begun to plateau slightly. The Dutchman proved to be the fastest driver on track, particularly during the closing laps, largely due to excellent management of his soft compound tires, which were exceptionally well-suited to the characteristics of the Red Bull RB21.
Oliver Bearman also delivered an outstanding performance in the Mexican Grand Prix, finishing in fourth place for Haas. The Ferrari junior made the most of the car’s excellent top speed, which allowed him to remain competitive and maintain positions near the front of the field. Furthermore, during the third stint of the race, Oliver Bearman ran on soft tires and successfully resisted the attacking efforts of Oscar Piastri, who was looking to make progress through the field.
Mercedes experienced a mixed and challenging race in Mexico, partly due to the presence of Oliver Bearman and Haas’ strong performance. Both Kimi Antonelli and George Russell struggled to maintain competitive performance in the extreme track conditions, with high track temperatures and difficult track positioning contributing to thermal management issues and making it difficult for Mercedes to extract maximum performance from their cars.
Overall, Ferrari demonstrated a strong strategic approach and an impressive ability to manage tires effectively, particularly through careful use of lift and coast during critical portions of the race. Charles Leclerc’s performance highlighted his skill in maintaining pace and managing tire degradation, while Lewis Hamilton faced his own challenges but managed to deliver a solid points finish. Max Verstappen, despite encountering rear grip issues and requiring lift and coast, demonstrated the speed and tire management necessary to recover positions during the latter stages of the race. Lando Norris maximized McLaren’s strengths, showing clean and effective tire management across both stints, and Oliver Bearman impressed with a fourth-place finish that underscored Haas’ potential in the hands of the young British driver.
And you? What do you think about Charles and Lewis’ performance in the Mexico City Grand Prix? Let us know with a comment at the end of the article or on our social media channels: Facebook Group / Facebook Page / Instagram / X (former Twitter) and TikTok.
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