Hamilton fired up for Mexico fight after Ferrari breakthrough

Lewis Hamilton is ready to unleash his inner fighter at the Mexico City Grand Prix, promising an “aggressive” start on Sunday after securing his best qualifying result since joining Ferrari.

The seven-time world champion set the third fastest lap in Saturday’s session at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, trailing only pole-sitter Lando Norris and teammate Charles Leclerc.

With his eyes set on ending a 19-race podium drought, Hamilton’s fiery determination and newfound confidence in Ferrari’s 2025 machine signal a potential game-changer in Sunday’s 71-lap showdown.

“For a moment I was P2 [on the grid] but the inside is actually not that nice, it’s quite dirty on the inside, so I’m quite grateful to be third and I hope that I can capitalise on that,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.

“Obviously, Charles has a new tyre, the same with Lando, but nevertheless P3 I think is not a bad position to start here because you can tow. So I’ll be quite aggressive, I want to move forwards somehow tomorrow.”

Best Qualifying Yet with Ferrari

Hamilton’s third place marks his best Grand Prix qualifying result since joining Ferrari at the start of the 2025 season. Only his sprint pole in Shanghai earlier this year tops it.

For a driver still adjusting to life in red, it’s a breakthrough moment.

“This is the first time we've both [Hamilton and Leclerc] been in the top three in qualifying this year and the team truly deserve it,” Hamilton said.

“We are just working as hard as we can. We've not really moved the car forward necessarily in development, but we've extracted more from it, and the processes are better.”

'Finally Figuring Out How to Drive This Car'

After months of frustration and inconsistency, Hamilton believes Ferrari’s progress is finally showing. He praised the Scuderia for tightening up its approach and highlighted the growing partnership with Leclerc as key to that improvement.

“We continue to improve on our process – from the moment we arrive, to our debriefs, to the decisions we make as a team within engineering, within when we going out – all these different things.

“So I think we’re just continuously tightening up on some of those areas,” he explained.

“And I think just how Charles and I have worked together to move the car and develop it forward has been really positive over the race weekends.

“Our cars are pretty much identical now, and I’m finally figuring out how to drive this car that Charles has been fortunate to drive for the past seven years, in terms of the characteristics. But I’m finally feeling like I’m getting there. So it's good.”

Eyes on the Podium

Hamilton’s 19-race podium drought has been the longest of his Formula 1 career – but the tone in Mexico suggests belief is returning.

Confident in Ferrari’s improving balance and buoyed by his own progress behind the wheel, the 40-year-old is primed for a bold challenge at a circuit where the slipstream down to Turn 1 can decide everything.

Whether he can convert aggression into silverware remains to be seen. But one thing is certain – Hamilton’s fire and passion are still burning bright.

Mexico City Grand Prix - Qualifying results

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