MEXICO CITY (AP) Lewis Hamilton stayed in hot pursuit of Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg in the chase for the Formula One season championship, posting the fastest lap of Friday's first practice for the Mexican Grand Prix.
Hamilton navigated the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez through cool temperatures and high altitude for a lap of 1 minute, 20.914 seconds, with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel second, 0.079 seconds behind.
Rosberg finished seventh in the session, 0.759 seconds behind Hamilton. Rosberg won the Mexican GP in 2015 from the pole position.
Rosberg is chasing his 10th win of the season and first career season championship. Hamilton, who won the U.S. Grand Prix last week in Texas, has won the previous two season titles. Rosberg leads Hamilton by 26 points with three races left.
