BWT Alpine Formula One Team continues the Americas triple-header as the sport climbs to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, at over 2,200 metres above sea level, for the Mexico City Grand Prix. Alpine Academy and FIA Formula 2 driver, Gabriele Minì, will make his Free Practice 1 debut in Formula One on Friday, as he gets behind the wheel of the A526 as part of the mandatory rookie outing requirements.

At high altitude, the Mexico City Grand Prix provides an interesting challenge to all teams and drivers with the conditions having a unique impact on the aerodynamic sensitivities of Formula One cars, with the air density reducing downforce and drag levels. Traditionally, teams have run high-downforce packages, despite a 1.2km main straight, but still are able to reach some of the highest speeds of the year because of the lower air resistance.

The 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix marks 40 years since the first Formula One victory for the team’s entry, under its previous guise of Benetton. In 1986, Gerhard Berger successfully completed a zero-stop race around the previous Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez layout, on very durable Pirelli tyres, to take the team’s – and his – first victory in the sport.

Pierre Gasly

“After a challenging race weekend in Austin, I was pleased to come away with a points finish for the team. Following the incident with Ollie [Bearman] early on, we got our heads down and secured P10 despite some damage to the car. Now, we are heading over to Mexico City for the second race of the triple-header. The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is very different to COTA and presents its own challenges, particularly with the high altitude, where the thin air always has an interesting effect on the car and the power unit. I expect that to present some challenges, so it will be interesting to see on Friday how that pans out. The atmosphere and support from the fans is always incredible to experience in Mexico City, so I look forward to seeing that again this year. We know we have plenty of work to do on track to score more points, especially as there are only five races remaining. The whole team is going to work hard to maximise our performance and our target is to have a strong weekend in Mexico City with another top ten finish.”

Franco Colapinto:

“It was a real pity to retire for the second race in a row in Austin after the car picked up damage from the incident with Arvid [Lindblad]. We had made reasonable progress considering we started from the back and on the Hards, however our focus is now entirely on Mexico City and to have a more straightforward and positive weekend. The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is always a special track to race at and it has a great feeling with the Mexican fans. You can hear them cheering and singing especially in the Stadium section which is one of the most unique parts of any track, all year. The high altitude will add a different challenge too so we will need to get the car set-up to take on the quite particular conditions and put ourselves in the most competitive position possible. With Gabriele [Minì] in my car for the latest mandatory rookie Free Practice 1 session, I’ll be looking forward to being on track on Friday afternoon and hopefully starting what will be a competitive weekend for us.”

Gabriele Minì

“I’m looking forward to getting behind the wheel of the A526 and taking part in my first ever Free Practice 1 in Formula One. Having been part of the Alpine Academy for several years and progressing through the junior ranks, competing in an official Formula One session is going to be a really special moment for me. Thank you to Flavio, Steve and everyone at the team for their trust and for the opportunity. I’ve been doing a lot of preparation back at base in Enstone, spending time on the simulator and working closely with the engineers to make sure I’m as ready as possible and able to put my best foot forward both personally and for the team. My goal is to do the best possible job on track and help provide valuable data and feedback to the team to hopefully set-up a successful weekend, where both Pierre and Franco aim to score points by the end of it.”

Did you know?

• After scoring a tenth-place finish in the United States Grand Prix, Pierre scored the 500th point of his Formula One career.
• Franco has completed precisely 1,000 laps in Grands Prix this season, and Pierre is just ahead on 1,002.