Charles Leclerc reveals hurried Ferrari ‘acid test’ on issue that left Lewis Hamilton in ‘trouble’

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Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton earned their best results for a while in the 2025 F1 United States Grand Prix, but the Mexico City GP will now be an “acid test” for Ferrari.

The Scuderia saw Leclerc return to the rostrum for the first time in six rounds last Sunday, as Hamilton also secured his best result in seven rounds. Leclerc took third in the United States GP ahead of Hamilton in P4, as the latter held off McLaren racer Oscar Piastri by only 1.142s.

Leclerc was a “little bit worried” to start the United States GP on soft tyres, which Ferrari felt correctly would give the Monegasque his best chance to overtake McLaren ace Lando Norris off the grid. Norris would only reclaim P2 on Lap 51 of 56, as Leclerc’s medium tyres fell off.

But Ferrari have headed straight from COTA to the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez for the Mexico City GP, knowing that they may face trouble in round 20 of the 2025 F1 season. The race also caps a year since Ferrari’s last win after Carlos Sainz won the 2024 Mexico City GP.

Charles Leclerc sees the Mexico City Grand Prix as an ‘acid test’ for Ferrari’s overheating brakes solution

Ferrari will run a modification on their brakes at the Mexico City GP, in the hope of fixing the problem that saw Hamilton’s front left brake failure late in the Singapore Grand Prix. The 40-year-old lost 51.202s to Fernando Alonso between laps 59 and 62 as he limped to the finish.

READ MORE: Everything to know about the Mexico City Grand Prix, including past winners

Leclerc also needed to lift and coast to manage his brakes in the Singapore GP from as early as Lap 7. So, Leclerc admits the Mexico City GP is an “acid test” for whether Ferrari’s hurried solution for their overheating brakes has worked, given the stresses they will face this week.

“Getting the aerodynamics right is tricky because of the location above sea level,” Leclerc said, via quotes by SPEEDWEEK. “And the brakes are working flat out.

“We had a lot of trouble with that in Singapore, so we modified the brakes. Mexico will be the acid test to see whether we’ve done everything right in this area.”

The Mexico City Grand Prix is the highest altitude race on the 2025 F1 calendar

The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is the race with the highest altitude on the F1 calendar in 2025, as the Mexico City GP is held 2,240m (7,349ft) above sea level. Interlagos, where F1 stages the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, is the second-highest race at an altitude of 780m (2,559ft).

Racing at an altitude of 2,240m (7,349ft) impacts every part of an F1 car due to the reduced air density. Teams are even forced to use high downforce levels, despite the Mexico City GP even featuring the third longest straight on the 2025 F1 calendar with a 1,270m pit straight.

Cooling the cars is a particular issue for teams at the Mexico City GP, too, owing to how thin the air is at a high altitude. Teams will often open slots in the bodywork and the brake ducts to limit the chances of overheating, but Ferrari have also been forced to use a modification.

Ferrari were too aggressive with their set-up for the Singapore GP, which caused Leclerc and Hamilton to both suffer with overheating brakes at Marina Bay. The Scuderia also reviewed how they made such a mistake, and will hope the subsequent changes work in Mexico City.