• Lewis Hamilton is on pole for a grand prix for the first time as a Ferrari driver. His best lap of 1:16.514 was good enough to narrowly pip former team-mate George Russell to the best grid slot by just 0.009 seconds, while Charles Leclerc was just over a tenth behind in third.
• Behind the top three, however, there have been some changes. Max Verstappen qualified fourth quickest on the road, but drops to fifth in the starting order because of a one-place grid penalty, issued to the Red Bull racer for his part in an unnecessary collision with Liam Lawson during Friday practice.
• Verstappen's punishment means Kimi Antonelli will instead line up on the second row alongside Leclerc. While his pace has not been particularly eye-catching so far this weekend, he is well-placed to seal his world champion status on Sunday and only needs to finish ninth or higher to get over the line.
• Meanwhile, Lawson was also given a one-place grid penalty for his role in the practice skirmish with Verstappen, but that has been rendered moot. The Racing Bulls driver qualified eighth on the road but was disqualified overnight for a technical breach.
• Lawson has been given permission to take part in the race, but will be 22nd and last on the starting grid. Everyone who qualified behind the New Zealander has been bumped up by one grid slot as a result of his disqualification.
• That includes Valtteri Bottas who is serving 50 places' worth of grid penalties because of new engine parts fitted to his Cadillac. Anything over 15 places is converted into an automatic back-of-grid start, though he was slower than everyone else in qualifying anyway.
• Ryo Hirakawa, making his competitive F1 debut for Haas, qualified 19th on the road and will start 18th because of Lawson's disqualification. Hirakawa is the stand-in for Esteban Ocon, who was suddenly dropped by Haas on Saturday with no public explanation, though the Frenchman insists rumours of a physical altercation with team principal Ayao Komatsu are untrue.

Mexico City Grand Prix provisional starting grid with penalties applied

1. Lewis Hamilton - Ferrari
2. George Russell - Mercedes
3. Charles Leclerc - Ferrari
4. Kimi Antonelli - Mercedes
5. Max Verstappen - Red Bull
6. Lando Norris - McLaren
7. Isack Hadjar - Red Bull
8. Arvid Lindblad - Racing Bulls
9. Pierre Gasly - Alpine
10. Nico Hulkenberg - Audi
11. Franco Colapinto - Alpine
12. Oscar Piastri - McLaren
13. Gabriel Bortoleto - Audi
14. Oliver Bearman - Haas
15. Carlos Sainz - Williams
16. Alex Albon - Williams
17. Fernando Alonso - Aston Martin
18. Ryo Hirakawa - Haas
19. Lance Stroll - Aston Martin
20. Sergio Perez - Cadillac
21. Valtteri Bottas - Cadillac
22. Liam Lawson - Racing Bulls