Drama for Pérez
Max Verstappen has recorded his sixteenth victory of the season in Formula 1, improving his own record of fifteen races won from 2022. The three-time world champion won the Grand Prix of Mexico with force majeure in his Red Bull. He had a 14-second lead over Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton at the finish. Charles Leclerc drove his Ferrari to third place.
It was the fifth time that Verstappen won the race in Mexico City and already his 51st victory in Formula 1. The Limburger has now reached the same level in the number of victories as the Frenchman Alain Prost and now shares fourth place in the eternal rankings. . The race went dramatically for Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Pérez. The Mexican had a flashy start in his home race from fifth place and even attempted to take the lead entering the first corner, but collided with Leclerc’s Ferrari and went off the track. His race was over, much to the disappointment of the tens of thousands of avid fans.
Verstappen did what he had in mind at the start. The world champion managed to maneuver himself into the lead from third place on the long straight to the first corner in the slipstream between the Ferraris of Leclerc and Sainz. He immediately distanced himself. The race in the thin air of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez, located at an altitude of 2200 meters, seemed to unfold in a long solo at the front for the Dutchman, but a crash halfway through the race by Kevin Magnussen led to an unpleasant interruption. The Dane drove his Haas car into the crash barriers at high speed. The wreckage caught fire after Magnussen climbed out under his own power. The race management deemed the burning car unsafe and stopped the race.
A standing restart followed after the break, but now with Verstappen from pole position. It was a textbook start. The Dutchman did not let anyone benefit from his slipstream, dived into the corner first and was immediately away. Behind him, the drivers of Ferrari and Mercedes dueled with each other for the remaining podium places. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was the best of the rest; he passed Leclerc after forty laps and then raced quite easily to second place. The seven-time world champion also finished second in the United States GP last week, but his Mercedes failed inspection after the race, resulting in a disqualification.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl