News Summary
- Cadillac replaced Sergio Pérez’s power unit as a precaution during final practice for the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix.
- Pérez completed only an installation lap and recorded no time in FP3, losing his final opportunity to prepare on track before qualifying.
- No additional grid penalty has been confirmed for the Mexican driver, whose teammate Valtteri Bottas already faces a 50-place penalty.
Cadillac has decided to replace Sergio Pérez’s power unit ahead of qualifying for the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix, leaving the Mexican driver without a timed lap during Saturday’s (31) final practice session. The American team described the change as a precautionary measure, adding another complication to Pérez’s preparations for his home race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.
“We are carrying out a precautionary power unit change on Checo’s car ahead of qualifying,” Cadillac said in a statement issued during FP3.
The decision restricted Pérez to a single installation lap, preventing him from completing the qualifying simulations that other drivers carried out during the final hour of practice.
Pérez loses final practice after difficult Friday
The power unit change followed a challenging opening day for Pérez, who finished 18th in both Friday sessions.
The Cadillac driver completed 31 laps in FP1, setting a 1:20.395, before improving to 1:19.406 across 33 laps in FP2.
Pérez also acknowledged that he had not been feeling physically well during the opening day, although he indicated that he expected to be able to compete.
His lack of running on Saturday means Cadillac must rely primarily on Friday’s data to prepare his car for qualifying.
The Mexican Grand Prix carries particular significance for Pérez, who is competing in front of his home crowd in his first season with Cadillac.
The race also represents his 300th Formula 1 Grand Prix appearance, according to the milestone identified during the weekend.
Cadillac faces double power unit disruption in Mexico
Pérez’s precautionary change comes after teammate Valtteri Bottas received a substantial penalty for exceeding the permitted allocation of power unit components.
The Finn finished FP3 in 20th position, setting a 1:20.342, while Pérez was unable to register a time.
Cadillac has not confirmed whether Pérez’s replacement components will result in a grid penalty. That will depend on the specification of the parts installed and their position within the driver’s permitted season allocation.
The final practice session was led by Lando Norris, who beat Andrea Kimi Antonelli by just 0.001s, underlining the competitive challenge facing Cadillac as it prepares for qualifying.
GRANDE PRÊMIO is following every session of the Mexican Grand Prix this weekend, with breaking news, full coverage and real-time updates in its Formula 1 section.
