Verstappen wins Mexico after Hamilton–Leclerc clash; Antonelli becomes youngest world champion

At the Mexico City Grand Prix on 3 November 2026 a first-lap battle between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc allowed Red Bull's Max Verstappen to get through and go on to win the race, with Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton finishing second and Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli finishing third to become Formula 1's youngest world champion.

Hamilton said the intra-team fight cost Ferrari victory and that the team "have to have some serious talks behind closed doors" after the episode, while team boss Frederic Vasseur admitted he was "frustrated"; Charles Leclerc defended his actions, saying "I could be also unhappy with how much he pushed me off track out of Turn One," and "At the end we both did a mistake going into Turn Four. It's not like we had contact whatsoever. We both went straight and that gave the opportunity for Max to overtake. So I don't think it should be that much of a talking point."

Hamilton also described the on-track consequences directly: "When your team-mate works against you and then you lose positions like that, it's definitely tough," and later added, "We've just got to figure out. But something needs to change for sure." He observed that Ferrari "don't have rules of engagement, and whether or not that would change anything from Charles' side, I don't know."

Andrew Benson notes the clash exposed the difficulty for Vasseur in managing two high-status drivers whose individual priorities can conflict with the team result; had Verstappen not passed Hamilton as a consequence of the opening-lap incident, Leclerc could have given the place back by Turn 11 as required, but once Verstappen was between them Leclerc had little realistic option.

McLaren's established approach to intra-team management was cited as a contrast, with the article noting the team has "papaya" rules of engagement including that "one is not to crash into each other" and that "the team result comes first," while acknowledging even McLaren's drivers have had problems, including last year's incidents and a sprint crash in Singapore.

The piece also covered wider calendar concerns after Yamaha withdrew from MotoGP in Qatar and many riders expressed unease about racing there; Carlos Sainz warned at the US Grand Prix that "(The sport's bosses) seem very convinced that it's going to go ahead. On my personal side, and not speaking as the GPDA, it's very difficult to be convinced right now because there are still things happening in the Middle East, and also there is obviously an election that is going to happen in the US and things that are going to happen on the political side of the world that could affect the next month, month and a half, very suddenly. So, I think it's relatively premature to be so convinced." Williams subsequently spoke to Sainz and issued a clarifying statement.

F1's public position is that governments involved have insisted there are no significant risks, that there have been no attacks on civilian infrastructure for nearly six months, and that the UK government is not advising against travel; the sport also faces commercial ties with Qatar and Abu Dhabi, with Qatar a co-owner of the Audi F1 team and Abu Dhabi a co-owner of McLaren, and Imola is being prepared as a back-up venue to replace Abu Dhabi if necessary.

Esteban Ocon was dropped by Haas for the rest of the Mexico City weekend after an apparent confrontation with team boss Ayao Komatsu on Friday following practice and a dispute with race engineer Laura Mueller over tyre choices in second practice; Ocon issued a statement acknowledging "a difference in viewpoints (that) led to a discussion with the parties involved" and saying he "categorically rejected any reports or allegations suggesting that any form of physical violence was used to resolve any differences of any nature." A source said on Saturday the decision was only for that weekend, but with Ocon due to leave the team at the end of the season Haas's options include continuing with Ryo Hirakawa, who raced in Mexico, or promoting Rafael Camara, who has already been signed for next year.

The article revisited the longstanding rule allowing tyre changes after a red flag, recalling the 2011 Monaco Grand Prix where a red flag removed tyre-related jeopardy for leading cars, and said the regulation remains justified on safety grounds—for example if debris has damaged tyres—and that there is not currently an appetite to change it.

For practical reasons a decision on the end-of-season Middle East races cannot be delayed much longer, and Imola is being prepared as the contingency venue should Abu Dhabi (or Qatar) be unable to go ahead.