Lewis Hamilton will sit out the first practice session at this weekend\u2019s Mexican Grand Prix with Antonio Fuoco driving in his place, Ferrari has confirmed.<\/p>\n
Ferrari announced on Monday that Fuoco will drive the SF-25 car in Friday\u2019s FP1 session at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.<\/p>\n
Ferrari confirms Antonio Fuoco will deputise for Lewis Hamilton in Mexican GP F1<\/p>\n
It will mark Fuoco\u2019s first-ever appearance on an official race weekend, more than a decade after his maiden Formula 1 test with Ferrari.<\/p>\n
Ferrari stopped short of announcing which driver Fuoco would replace in FP1 in Mexico on Monday.<\/p>\n
As revealed by PlanetF1.com<\/a>, however, it soon emerged that Hamilton would be the one forced to make way as teammate Charles Leclerc has already sat out two FP1 sessions in the F1 2025 season.<\/p>\n Under F1\u2019s rules, teams are required to field a rookie driver \u2013 described as drivers who have started no more than two grands prix \u2013 in at least two FP1 sessions per car each season.<\/p>\n Lewis Hamilton vs Charles Leclerc: Ferrari head-to-head scores for F1 2025<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49\u00a0F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates<\/a><\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49\u00a0F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates<\/a><\/p>\n Ferrari has now confirmed that Fuoco, who represents Ferrari in the World Endurance Championship and won the prestigious Le Mans 24 Hours race in 2024, will deputise for Hamilton in Mexico.<\/p>\n Fuoco said: \u201cMy debut in an official weekend is something that, both personally and professionally, makes me truly proud and happy.<\/p>\n \u201cHaving the opportunity to drive Lewis\u2019s car and to share the garage with Charles again, as we did in 2017 in Formula 2, is really special.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve shared many moments together, both on and off the track.<\/p>\n \u201cThen our careers took different paths, but we\u2019ve always maintained a great relationship, and today we\u2019ve both achieved important milestones with Ferrari.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will definitely be a Friday to remember, a reward for the work I\u2019ve done over the years in support of the team.<\/p>\n \u201cMy main contribution will certainly be to provide a useful reference for simulator correlation, trying to collect as much data as possible and to verify in real conditions how the car behaves on track during a race weekend.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me personally, it will also be important to help me improve in the work I usually do on the simulator.<\/p>\n \u201cWorking with Lewis\u2019 engineers and the rest of the team at the track will allow me to grow further and refine the technical sensitivity that I\u2019ll bring back to my work in Maranello.\u201d<\/p>\n Fuoco went on to describe his first official F1 outing with Ferrari as one of the highlights of his motorsport career.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cLooking back at my journey, I can say that these years with Ferrari have been truly unique.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve come a long way together, from the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy to GT racing, through work in the simulator, developing the Formula 1 car, and finally the 499P project.<\/p>\n \u201cI must admit I\u2019m very proud, especially as an Italian driver who dreamed since childhood of racing for Ferrari.<\/p>\n \u201cThe victory with the Hypercar in the 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans will probably remain the highlight of my career, but being able to finally take part officially in a Formula 1 weekend with Scuderia Ferrari HP is an incredible feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n More on Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n \ud83d\udc49 Lewis Hamilton news<\/a><\/p>\n