Max Verstappen got off to a good start and gave a decisive turn of the wheel that allowed him to secure the victory even before the first corner on Sunday. The Red Bull driver thus won the Formula 1 Grand Prix of Mexico, signing his ninth victory this season – and his second in a row.
Verstappen completed the event which took place in front of 372,000 spectators under a partly cloudy sky at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez with a 16-second cushion in front of Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton. Local favorite Sergio Perez completed the podium just over a second behind the Briton.
“I have to congratulate Max because they had the best car this weekend and I couldn’t do much about it,” said Hamilton, visibly disappointed. I gave everything; it was a good fight towards the end against Sergio [Perez]. It shows the quality of their car. They applied pressure all the time. ”
Verstappen, who was starting from third on the starting grid, took advantage of the suction behind Hamilton’s car in the long straight leading to the first corner to surprise him and take the lead. He was never worried again afterwards.
“We had to brake [au départ] as late as possible, which then allowed me to concentrate solely on my race management. There are still a lot of races on the calendar, but I’m optimistic, ”summarized Verstappen, a smile on his face.
Meanwhile, Bottas, who started from pole position, was caught by Daniel Ricciardo’s McLaren, causing the Finn to spin up. The latter then had to make a long ascent – slowed down by a disastrous pit stop at 42e turn – which relegated it to 15e rank.
Mexican spectators got their money’s worth, especially at the end of the race, as Perez found himself in Hamilton’s gearbox, in a fight for the third step of the podium. After several unsuccessful attempts, the Mexican finally ran out of time and had to settle for third place.
“I was hoping to achieve the double for the team [Red Bull], and it was very tight, ”said Perez, known as“ Checo ”.
By virtue of these results, Verstappen, who covets a first world championship in his career, thus widened the gap to 19 points at the top of the general classification ahead of Hamilton.
The other arrivals
Pierre Gasly (Lapha Tauri) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) completed the top-5, in order.
Aston Martin team driver Sebastian Vettel had a clean race and finished seventh, behind Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz Jr..
For his part, the Quebecer Lance Stroll, had a very difficult weekend and could not do better than the 14e position. The Aston Martin pilot had started from the 20e and last place on the starting grid, after his team replaced parts of its powertrain at the start of the weekend.
Torontonian Nicholas Latifi ended in 17e place behind the wheel of his Williams.
Yuki Tsunoda (Alpha Tauri) and Mick Schumacher (Haas) were forced to retire early in the race.
The Mexican Grand Prix was back after a one-year hiatus, due to the coronavirus pandemic. There are still four races to negotiate on the calendar for the 2021 season. The next stop will be in Brazil, next weekend.