Lewis Hamilton believes he is losing two to three tenths of a second per lap down the straights to Mercedes and Red Bull after a tough Friday at the Mexico City Grand Prix.

Ferrari witnessed rather contrasting fortunes for their two drivers on the opening day of on-track action at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on Friday. While Charles Leclerc topped both practice sessions to start his weekend at the Mexico City GP, Hamilton hit early trouble.

Hamilton was able to record the fourth-fastest lap time as Leclerc topped FP1 in Mexico City, yet his lap was 0.738s worse than the table-topping 1:18.128 that his teammate set. The 41-year-old was also P11 after an engine failure as Leclerc led FP2 in Mexico City on a 1:17.827.

Charles Leclerc does the double to top FP2 at the Mexico City GP – Who is your favourite for pole after Day 1?

Lewis Hamilton rubbishes claims that Ferrari’s smaller turbo is an advantage in Mexico

It still remains to be seen whether Ferrari will have to change the engine in Hamilton’s SF-26 before FP3 and qualifying at the Mexico City GP on Saturday. The Scuderia are still checking for the cause of the issue that made the Briton park at the side of the road after 28 minutes.

The Scuderia’s engine was already a big talking point ahead of the weekend, as some figures in the paddock like Mercedes’ George Russell think Ferrari’s smaller turbo is an advantage at the Mexico City GP. Hamilton, however, firmly disagrees with the theory, given that he lost a lot of lap time down the 1.2km (0.7mi) pit straight owing to the Scuderia’s PU lacking power.

Hamilton said, via quotes by RacingNews365: “I don’t really agree on the turbo thing. If you look at the [top] speeds of the Mercedes and the Red Bull, they’re still massive. They’re still quicker at the end of the straights, like they are at every race.

“The turbo is just not making a difference. It’s still pulling more at the end of the straights, so I think we’re still losing a good couple of tenths [per lap] – two or three tenths – but the car is behaving really well fundamentally. Our car is working well at tracks like this.”

Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto (using an Audi engine) recorded the fastest top speed during FP2 at the Mexico City GP, after the Brazilian reached 352kph (218.7mph). Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar and Max Verstappen (with RBPT PUs), Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg and Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly (with Mercedes PUs) all reached 351kph (218.1mph) in FP2.

Ferrari’s Hamilton and Leclerc, meanwhile, were two of the nine drivers who hit a top speed of 349kph (216.8mph) in FP2 at the Mexico City GP. Only Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad with an RBPT engine at 348kph (216.2mph) and the Aston Martin duo of Fernando Alonso at 347kph (215.6mph) and Lance Stroll at 346kph (214.9mph) with the Honda PU were slower.

Yet while Hamilton did not feel Ferrari’s smaller turbo (which they intend to change in 2027) offered an advantage on Friday, team principal Fred Vasseur feels it will give the Scuderia a boost at the Mexico City GP once they – like their F1 rivals – refine their set-ups for the race.

“Yes,” Vasseur simply stated about Ferrari’s smaller turbo being an advantage, via the Italian edition of Motorsport.com. “But everyone will improve; everyone will fine-tune their cars to account for the altitude.

“It’s true that the conditions are extremely different from those we normally face, and for the drivers, racing here in Mexico City with this level of downforce is a challenge.

“They were used to having the highest downforce of the entire season. I think the difference compared to last year is much smaller at Monza than at Monaco or in Mexico, and this makes the situation even more challenging for them.”

Despite Vasseur’s stance, reports had emerged ahead of the weekend that Ferrari’s smaller turbo may struggle in Mexico City due to the altitude. The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is 7,350 feet above sea level, and the thin air forces Ferrari’s smaller turbo to work harder.