MEXICO CITY GP – Max Verstappen takes dominant win extending championship lead over Lewis Hamilton
Max Verstappen has taken victory after a brilliant drive looking quicker throughout the Mexico City Grand Prix finishing sixteen seconds ahead of title rival Lewis Hamilton. The Red Bull driver put in a brilliant drive steady controlling the race as Hamilton couldn’t close up enough to try and pass in the closing stages and was under pressure from Sergio Perez.
Verstappen’s third win in Mexico City and ninth of the season, sees him open up a nineteen-point lead over the Mercedes driver with four races to go in the season. Red Bull pace looked strong throughout with Verstappen winning the start sweeping past Hamilton and pole sitter Valtteri Bottas at the first corner.
Bottas would drop out of contention for points at his second stop, but that allowed him to take fastest lap away from Verstappen in the closing stages. While Hamilton was able to control Perez late in the race once clearing Norris, up until the Mercedes cleared the backmarker the Mexican was closing in.
Verstappen then started openly up the lead over Hamilton and got into the position to hold the net lead when he stopped before teammate Perez. The Mexican ran longer than Hamilton before his sole pit stop but could not quite make his tyre advantage count to secure Red Bull a one-two.
Perez became the first Mexican driver to finish on the podium in Mexico City since the first race in 1963.
The top three have a clear advantage over the rest of the field, Red Bull also leading both the drivers and constructors’ championship with four races to go. It was another race about strategy, Mercedes has looked to have the quicker car all weekend, but Red Bull were able to get ahead at the start and then were unable to hold Verstappen off during the pit stop
The momentum increasingly appears to shift towards Verstappen, but uncertainties still remain with new tracks in Doha and Jeddah, and the sprint format in Sao Paulo next weekend. Bottas eventually finishing fifteenth after being spun at the first corner by Daniel Ricciardo, the Finn was used by Mercedes on the last lap to denied Verstappen the extra point for fastest lap.
Verstappen said “The start? It was nice three wide and it was all about just trying to brake as late as you can. I kept it on the track, came from third to first and that was basically what made my race because I could just focus on myself, and we had incredible pace in the car.”
Hamilton said: “Their car was so superior this weekend that there wasn’t really anything we could do about it. I am just happy to have second. I gave it absolutely everything and it was a great fight with Sergio at the end, I was able to at least get second.”
Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly had a strong race finishing fourth, seventeen seconds ahead of the Ferrari’s with Charles Leclerc being the last car on the lead lap. Leclerc’s teammate Carlos Sainz sixth a lap down, a strong result for their battle for third in the constructors championship with McLaren who scored only a point with Lando Norris tenth.
Ferrari had tried to get past Gasly during the closing stages by swapping Leclerc and Sainz, both drivers went wide in the pursuit of the Frenchman, but were unable to pass.
The Spaniard was lapped in the closing stages and finished seven seconds ahead of Sebastian Vettel who was seventh for Aston Martin. But fifth and sixth for the Scuderia allowed them to move back ahead of McLaren in the constructors’ championship.
Norris had looked to have decent pace early on with Hamilton struggling to clear him early on, but the seven-time champion cleared him eventually.
Kimi Raikkonen finished eighth ahead of Fernand Alonso and Lando Norris rounding out the top ten. It looked to be a tough race for McLaren, Norris appearing not to make progress following his pit stop on lap forty five, he remained tenth for the remainder of the race.
Antonio Giovinazzi was eleventh, the Alfa Romeo driver splitting the two McLaren’s finishing almost nine-tenths ahead of Daniel Ricciardo. A strong race for both Alfa Romeo’s who are normally battling lower down the order. Esteban Ocon finished thirteenth, the Alpine driver being sandwiched at the start.
Ocon fought for position on the opening lap, the Frenchman was caught between Yuki Tsunoda and Mick Schumacher, bringing out the safety car. While the Frenchman was able to continue both the Alpha Tauri and Haas were out on the spot bringing out the safety car.
Lance Stroll finishing fourteenth ahead of Bottas, George Russell finishing sixteenth ahead of teammate Nicolas Latifi with Nikita Mazepin the final finisher in eighteenth.
Related
- Mexico City GP – Qualifying Result
- MEXICO CITY GP – Valtteri Bottas Takes Pole As Mercedes Take Surprise Front Row Lockout
- MEXICO CITY GP – Max Verstappen Sets The Pace In Second Practice Four-Tenths Ahead Of Valtteri Bottas
- MEXICO CITY GP – Valtteri Bottas Leads A Mercedes One-Two In Tight First Practice
- F1 Today – Mexico City Prixview – 04/11/2021
- PRIXVIEW – Mexico City Grand Prix 2021]