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MEXICO CITY — Updated May 12, 2026
Lewis Hamilton’s second free-practice session at the Mexico City Grand Prix ended early when his Ferrari SF-26 suddenly lost power. The British driver was guided to the side of the start-finish straight, a virtual safety car was briefly deployed, and the team began a full investigation. Hamilton, however, signaled that the problem may not ruin his weekend.
The stoppage came roughly 30 minutes into FP2. Hamilton reported the loss of performance directly to his race engineer, Carlo Santi, who told him to stop the car. By that point, the seven-time world champion had already completed only a handful of push laps. The short VSC interruption gave the rest of the field time to slow down while marshals made sure the stationary Ferrari was safe.
Hamilton said later that Ferrari is still searching for the root cause. "They’re still investigating to find out what was wrong, and just praying that everything’s okay." Those words capture the mood: cautious, but not panicked.
What made the moment especially frustrating was that Hamilton had already compromised his preparation earlier in the day. He gave up part of FP1 to run aero-rake instrumentation—a process teams use to measure airflow over the car—and therefore arrived at FP2 with less baseline running than most of his rivals.
Hamilton acknowledged the sacrifice. He pointed out that most drivers at this circuit would normally allow a young driver to take the wheel in FP1, but he decided to use the session in a different way. The result is that he has effectively lost almost an entire day of meaningful preparation.
Still, the early signs from the car were positive. Before the power glitch, his lap times placed Ferrari comfortably near the front. Hamilton hinted that the loss of power may have been present even before the mechanics saw it in the telemetry. "I think I already had a loss of power earlier on in the lap and was still quick," he said. That statement suggests there is genuine pace in the SF-26 around the high-altitude Mexican circuit.
The most encouraging part of Hamilton’s debrief was his assessment of the setup. He admitted he had not been able to complete any long runs, which normally form the backbone of a Friday practice programme. Still, he insisted the car did not require major changes.
"I don't think we need to make many changes to the set-up. I'd probably leave it much the same because we were very quick." That is a useful signal for Ferrari. It means the team can focus on reliability rather than reintroducing the car’s handling balance. At a circuit where overtaking is notoriously difficult, preserving a quick single-lap car while restoring power output is the main priority.
Mexico City presents unique challenges for a power unit. The track sits around 2,240 meters above sea level, which leaves engines short of oxygen and forces turbochargers and electrical energy systems to work far harder than they do at sea level. Power-unit failures are not rare here. Early indications from the Ferrari garage point to an electronic hiccup rather than a structural failure, though nothing has been confirmed.
The immediate question is whether the Italian team can complete a full power-unit investigation before the final practice session. FP3 will begin at 11:30 local time, with qualifying to follow in the afternoon. That gives engineers very little time to inspect, test, and, if necessary, replace components.
A full engine or energy-store change is not impossible overnight, but it would require the team to work through a strict checklist. The sooner Ferrari can isolate the fault, the easier it will be to decide whether to keep the current unit or fit a fresh one. Hamilton’s calm reaction suggests the team has already ruled out the most catastrophic possibilities.
Hamilton, for his part, is not looking for excuses. "I'll give it everything tomorrow and just try to do the best with whatever I have," he said. That is exactly the kind of message Ferrari wants to hear after a disrupted day.
From a US perspective, this is becoming a significant subplot in Hamilton’s new chapter with Ferrari. The team has shown strong race-pace flashes this season, and Mexico is a venue where a well-balanced car can neutralise some of the engine disadvantage. The problem is that a power-unit penalty, if a replacement is needed, would be painful at a track where passing is at a premium.
The first clue about the severity will come in FP3. If Hamilton is back in the car within the first ten minutes and completes a normal run plan, the issue was likely minor. If the team limits him to system checks, fans should prepare for a longer battle.
Hamilton’s race engineer and the trackside crew are expected to provide a clearer update after the engine is mapped. For now, the key message from the Ferrari garage is calm preparation, not alarm.
With qualifying on Saturday and a race where strategy can tilt the result, Hamilton's optimism may be justified. But until the SF-26 runs a full set of laps without fault, the "praying that everything's okay" part of his comment remains the most relevant.
