As it happened: 2024 Mexican Grand Prix qualifying

This session has finished. No further updates will be posted.

Qualifying for the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix is coming up next

Q1 has begun, no one is out just yet. Going off the FP3 results we can expect Sauber and Alpine to have the most difficulty progressing beyond the session, while Aston Martin, Haas and Williams will have to watch their step.

Ferrari are among the first to head out and have put their drivers on a set of mediums, hoping to save soft rubber for later in the session. Sergio Perez opts for softs but his team mate isn’t on-track yet.

Valtteri Bottas puts up the first time: 1’18.507. That’s quicker than his team mate and the Alpines can manage.

The Ferrari drivers go quickest on mediums but the McLarens are on mediums too and Lando Norris sets the quickest time with a 1’17.203. Perez had a slow lap and is only 10th on softs.

Norris stops at the weigh bridge as McLaren tell him to – he points out the light signal for drivers wasn’t working.

Verstappen isn’t risking the mediums and opts for softs to go quickest with a 1’16.998, 0.2s up on Norris.

Zhou, last, says he had an engine problem on his best lap.

A great lap by Fernando Alonso on softs puts him third, 0.309s off Verstappen.

Sainz improves his time on mediums and goes third, 1’17.241. But that’s beaten by Nico Hulkenberg and Yuki Tsunoda on softs.

Now Pierre Gasly goes second on a set of softs, which is surely going to force everyone to consider soft rubber.

Piastri has switched to the softs. Sainz pits with just under six minutes to go and is called onto the weigh bridge, which is going to put him under time pressure to set a lap at the end.

Norris does a 1’16.505 on softs to go quickest but his team mate Piastri is labouring, his latest lap time is deleted for a track limits infringement at turn 12 and he’s only 19th – ahead of Perez.

McLaren tell Piastri to cool his tyres to get another lap in. He moves up but only to 14th with a 1’17.597.

Perez is out! He fails to make the cut for Q2 at home.

Piastri is out too! Kevin Magnussen improved for the fifth fastest time and he falls into the drop zone.

Ocon can’t improve on 19th which spares Stroll elimination. Colapinto, Piastri, Perez, Ocon and Zhou fall at the first hurdle.

Q2 begins. Alexander Albon, the sole remaining Williams driver, heads out.

Verstappen says “the rear tyres were a bit tricky” due to “low grip.” He has gone quickest however with a 1’16.629.

Leclerc, who was warned about track limits during second practice, has a lap time deleted for cutting turn two.

Norris pops up with a 1’16.301, putting him over three-tenths of a second ahead of Verstappen. The Mercedes drivers are third and fourth, Leclerc is still yet to log a time in this session.

A strong lap from Alexander Albon puts him fifth. Leclerc is on-track and goes quicker of all in the first sector.

Leclerc goes safe in third, Sainz pips him. Bottas is now last and Aston Martin and Haas also have both drivers in the drop zone.

Lawson falls into the drop zone as Magnussen goes third.

Red flag! Tsunoda has crashed.

Hamilton appeared to pass Magnussen on the straight after the red flags came out.

The start of Q3 will be delayed. Yuki Tsunoda, Liam Lawson, Fernando Alonso, Lance Stroll and Valtteri Bottas are all eliminated in Q2.

Alonso says he was on a “mega lap” before the red flags came out, worth “two tenths and a half.”

Q3 has begun now. The Haas drivers head out first, Verstappen follows them, then Norris, Albon, Gasly, Leclerc and Sainz – the latter with Magnussen behind him now, setting his first lap and potentially benefitting from the Ferrari’s slipstream.

Verstappen puts up a 1’16.368, Norris can’t beat that, he’s over half a second slower in second place.

But Verstappen loses the time! It’s been deleted for a track limits infringement at turn two. From the top-down view it appeared he was off at turn three as well.

The Ferrari drivers go top, followed by the Mercedes and Norris is down to fifth.

Worth noting Sainz’s lap for provisional pole is faster than Verstappen’s deleted time. Sainz is on a 1’16.055.

The final runs have begun with the championship contenders at the back of the queue.

The final runs begin. Leclerc stays second. Sainz goes quicker, 1’15.946.

Verstappen goes second and Norris only manages third!

Leclerc: “Shit, shit shit. Fucking shit lap.”

So Sainz is on pole position ahead of Verstappen, Norris and Leclerc. Here’s the full run-down of the grid for the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix

2024 Mexican Grand Prix

• McLaren have no regrets over pitting Norris shortly before red flag came out
• Leclerc fined, avoids same penalty as Verstappen after apologising for swearing
• Leclerc not in the clear over swearing as Verstappen claims he went unpunished
• Majority of drivers wanted racing rules to change “straight away” – Russell
• Verstappen was “over the limit” with Norris but others would do same – Leclerc