Vettel tops Mexican Grand Prix 2nd practice

The four-time Formula 1 champion on Friday made it around the track at the Hermanos Rodriguez Autodrome in Mexico City in 1:16.607, nearly a second faster than the lap Briton Lewis Hamilton closing in on his sixth F1 title drove to finish first in Free Practice 1 (FP1), reports Efe news.

Dutchman Max Verstappen (Red Bull) was second with a time of 1:16.722, followed by Monaco's Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) in third.

Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) was fourth, while his teammate, Hamilton, took the fifth spot.

The Briton led FP1 with a time of 1:17.327 on a track still wet from heavy rains Thursday night.

Leclerc was second-fastest with a time of 1:17.446. Verstappen, Alexander Albon (Red Bull) and Bottas rounded out the top five.

Much expectation surrounds this year's Mexican Grand Prix because the 34-year-old Hamilton could clinch a third straight drivers' title and sixth championship overall on Sunday.

That would leave him just one shy of the record held by German racing great Michael Schumacher, who won seven drivers' titles between 1994 and 2004.

FP3 will be held Saturday morning (local time) and three rounds of qualifying will follow on Saturday afternoon.

Hamilton leads the 2019 drivers' standings with 338 points, 64 more than teammate Bottas.

After the Mexico stop, the season will continue with two more races in the Americas in November: the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on November 3; and the Brazilian Grand Prix at the Jose Carlos Pace Autodrome in Sao Paulo's Interlagos neighbourhood on November 17.

The season will wrap up on December 1 with one final race at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

( With inputs from IANS )