Max Verstappen threw down the gauntlet to Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris by setting a dominant pace in practice for the Mexican Grand Prix as his McLaren title rivals struggled.

The Dutchman has roared back into championship contention by winning three of the last four races and is favourite to rack up another victory in Mexico City , where he has won five times before.

Verstappen, chasing a fifth successive title, finished Friday’s running 0.153 seconds clear of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc , with Norris 0.251sec off the pace in fourth and championship leader Piastri enduring a horrible session to finish 12th and a whopping 0.840sec adrift.

McLaren have further cause for concern due to the apparent pace of Leclerc, who finished third last weekend in Austin, while Kimi Antonelli w

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