Max Verstappen dominated the Mexican Grand Prix Formula 1 race, securing a new record of wins in a single season – 16. The race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez was interrupted with a red flag.
Race summary
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) had the pole position, but like his teammate Carlos Sainz, he was caught by the Red Bulls on the way to turn one. Sergio Pérez even managed to be side by side with Leclerc and Verstappen and reached the turning point for the first corner in front. However, a slight steering movement by Verstappen led to contact with Leclerc, and from that with Pérez – who “flew” and suffered terminal damage to the sides. The Monegasque driver had damage to the front wing, but continued on the track.
At the end of the first lap, Verstappen was already leading with more than a one-second advantage over Leclerc, with Sainz in third. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) took some time to get past the surprising Daniel Ricciardo (AlphaTauri) to get close to the podium positions.
Verstappen’s first tire change took place after lap 19, and upon returning to the track, it didn’t take long for him to return to the top three – being behind rivals who still had to go to the pits. Hamilton attempted the undercut on Sainz, who only changed tires on lap 30 – one lap before Leclerc. After that, Verstappen had a margin of more than 16 seconds at the top, while Hamilton successfully undercut Sainz and began to target Leclerc.
A spectacular accident by Kevin Magnussen (Haas) in turn nine on lap 33 led to a red flag to repair the barriers. After more than 20 minutes of interruption, the race resumed with a grid start. The frontrunners had all opted for hard tires… except Hamilton, who chose mediums.
At the restart, Verstappen easily distanced himself again, while Hamilton attacked Leclerc and, after some resistance from his rival, completed the overtake on the 40th lap on the way to the first corner. The Ferrari driver had no answer.
Until the end, the battle for the top positions didn’t have much of a story, with Verstappen, Hamilton, and Leclerc isolated in first, second, and third respectively. Sainz finished fourth, relatively comfortably after being pressured by George Russell. The British Mercedes driver conceded in the final stages and also lost fifth place to Lando Norris (McLaren).
In seventh place, Ricciardo scored his first points of the year, followed by Oscar Piastri (McLaren), Alexander Albon (Williams), and Esteban Ocon (Alpine) in the points positions. It should be noted that one of the big losers in this race was Aston Martin, which saw Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll forced to retire.
Results:
