Reigning champion Lando Norris led the final practice session in Mexico City with a late 1:17.600 effort, edging Kimi Antonelli by a mere 0.001 seconds. Charles Leclerc, Oscar Piastri, and Max Verstappen rounded out the top five, though Verstappen will drop one place on Sunday's grid due to a penalty. Antonelli needs only a ninth-place result on race day to secure the title, while teammate George Russell ended practice in seventh. Down the field, Audi's Gabriel Bortoleto and Cadillac's Sergio Perez failed to set times after suffering power unit issues.
Key points
Kimi Antonelli needs to finish ninth or better on Sunday to become Formula One's youngest…: Kimi Antonelli needs to finish ninth or better on Sunday to become Formula One's youngest world champion.
George Russell must win the Mexico City Grand Prix to prevent Antonelli from securing the…: George Russell must win the Mexico City Grand Prix to prevent Antonelli from securing the drivers' championship.
Japanese driver Ryo Hirakawa took 19th place as he prepares for his debut with the Haas t…: Japanese driver Ryo Hirakawa took 19th place as he prepares for his debut with the Haas team.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
MEXICO CITY, Oct 31 : Reigning champion Lando Norris was fastest on Saturday in final practice for a Mexico City Grand Prix set to crown 20-year-old Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli as Formula One's youngest title winner.
The McLaren driver put in a flying late lap of one minute 17.600 seconds at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez to top the timesheets by the slimmest of margins, 0.001 faster than Antonelli who is poised to become Italy's first F1 world champion since 1953.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, fastest in both Friday sessions, was third quickest and 0.117 off the pace, with McLaren's Oscar Piastri fourth.
Red Bull's four-times champion Max Verstappen, who has a one place grid drop for Sunday's race, was fifth fastest ahead of Ferrari's seven-times champion Lewis Hamilton.
George Russell, Antonelli's teammate and closest rival, was seventh.
Russell is 123 points behind Antonelli and has to win on Sunday to prevent the Italian taking the title in Mexico. Antonelli will be champion if he finishes ninth or higher.
Japan's Ryo Hirakawa, replacing Frenchman Esteban Ocon at Haas and set for his…
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