MEXICO CITY GP – Lando Norris takes a dominant win and championship lead as he beats Charles Leclerc by thirty seconds
Lando Norris took a dominant victory as he beat Charles Leclerc by thirty seconds and took the championship lead by a point with victory in the Mexico City Grand Prix. The Englishman beautifully controlled the race as he never looked under pressure after he got a better start and fended off the Ferrari at the start.
Norris then ceased control and steadily opened the lead on the opening lap as he took his seventh win of the season, and reclaimed the lead for the first time since Jeddah.
The McLaren driver fended off Leclerc on the long run down to the first chicane, and fended off Leclerc, Verstappen and the second Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton. As the fight between the Ferrari’s and the Dutchman broke out, with Verstappen accusing the Ferrari of cutting Turn Four, during the opening six laps as they tussled for position in the early phases.
The Englishman has, over the last few races, chipped away at his teammate Oscar Piastri’s championship lead. In eight weeks, Norris’s title hopes have gone from over following a retirement at Zandvoort when running behind Piastri to a point lead. Momentum appears to be on his side as he has out-scored Piastri at the last five races. This has allowed him to wipe out Piastri’s thirty-four-point lead.
The battle between Leclerc and Verstappen resumed again in the closing phases, but the Ferrari driver hung on, allowing him to close the gap to the four-time champion, but the Red Bull driver still remains in mathematical contention for a fifth title in a row.
However, the race was brought to an early finish when a late virtual safety car after the Williams of Carlos Sainz came to a stop in the Fol Sol, which sealed victory for the Englishman. It was another beautiful drive as he never looked to come under serious pressure in a race which saw plenty of action.
Max Verstappen brought his Red Bull home third as he finished nine seconds ahead of Ollie Bearman and took his and Haas’ best result after finishing nearly two tenths behind the four-time champion. But for the Englishman tried his best to hang onto a maiden podium for him and Haas, before Verstappen found his way past on lap fifty-one.
But over the final quarter of the race, the Londoner fended off an attack from George Russell, as he tried to chase back down third. While Russell lost positions to Piastri and his teammate Kimi Antoneli, who he finished two seconds behind. There were moments in the race where the Englishman tried to convince the team to release him, but they opted against a move.
Norris, who took his first Mexico City Grand Prix win, said, “I didn’t hear a thing you said but I love it, thank you guys. What a race, I could just keep my eyes forward and focus on what I was doing. A pretty straightforward race for me, which is just what I was after. A good start, a good launch and a good first lap, and I could go from there.”
Leclerc, who finished second: “I mean, very happy with this weekend. The state was very positive for us. We didn’t know what to expect for this weekend, but to end up on the podium is a great surprise. Very happy to be on this amazing podium, once again.”
Verstappen finished third, he said: “It was very hectic, the beginning of the race for me. We had a very good start but then it was such a long run to Turn One, and we were on the outside and then Turn Three and Four wide. I had to be on that kerb, kept bottling out all the way so almost crashed over the grass, and even after that there was a lot going on.”
Bearman told Sky Sports, “It feels great, I’m really happy that is our joint-best finish in the history of the team. We had a great race, and of course, I was lucky to be where I was before the first stop, but actually, we had the pace to stay there. I held off Max [Verstappen] in the first stint, I held off the Mercedes in the second, and the McLaren in the third, so I was under a lot of pressure.”
Hamilton finished eighth, six seconds behind his former teammate, as the stewards awarded a ten-second penalty for cutting the corner, though they decided against further action over his failure to follow the race director’s instructions over rejoining. On what had been one of his strongest weekends of the season, it effectively took him out of the fight for the podium.
Hamilton had tried to hold off Verstappen at the first corner on Lap Six, but he ran wide at Turn Three, setting himself up to be out of position at the end of the straight for Five-Six. The Ferrari then braked late, causing him to run wide and cut the corner, and that was when he passed Verstappen, thus gaining an advantage, while Verstappen was delayed and passed by Bearman.
The Red Bull driver was unable to challenge the Briton for the remainder of the first stint, but on his inverted strategy, he came on strong in the second stint. Verstappen rejoined in eighth place after his pit stop, passed Hamilton, Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli and George Russell, Piastri, and Bearman when they pitted for a second time, and set off after Leclerc.
Twelve seconds behind with twenty-two laps to go and closing at nearly a second a lap initially, Verstappen looked a strong bet for second place. But the race was effectively ended when Sainz stopped with two laps remaining
But even with the penalty, he was a comfortable nineteen seconds ahead of Esteban Ocon, while Gabriel Bortoleto was a further two seconds behind as they completed the top ten. Bearman’s fourth place and Ocon’s ninth, moved Haas into eighth in the constructors.
Yuki Tsunoda missed out on the top ten by two seconds, the Red Bull driver was the final driver on the lead lap eighty seconds off race winner Norris. Alex Albon led the lapped cars, four seconds ahead of Lance Stroll with the two Alpine’s thirty-seven seconds. Pierre Gasly three tenths ahead of teammate Franco Colapinto.
Carlos Sainz was classified seventeenth but retired with four laps to go. The other retirements were Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg and Liam Lawson
Related
- Mexico City GP – Qualifying Result
- MEXICO CITY GP – Lando Norris beats Charles Leclerc to pole by a quarter of a second, as title rivals fall short
- MEXICO CITY GP – Lando Norris leads a British top three nearly three and a half tenths ahead of Lewis Hamilton in third practice
- MEXICO CITY GP – Max Verstappen throws down the gauntlet in FP2, three hundredths ahead of Lando Norris in fourth
- MEXICO CITY GP – Charles Leclerc fastest by a tenth ahead of Kimi Antonelli in first practice
- Welcome to the Mexico City Grand Prix