Key events
Here's the top of the grid again:
1) Lando Norris (McLaren)
2) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
4) George Russell (Mercedes)
5) Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
7) Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8) Isak Hajar (Racing Bulls)
9) Ollie Birman (Haas)
10) Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)
Title Fight Reminder:
Overall standings
Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 346 points – 7th place on the grid
Lando Norris (McLaren) 332 – 1st place
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 306 – 5th place
Drivers are on the grid, with the finishing touches on their cars. Pepas by Farruko blasts from the speakers, making it feel like any nightclub in a Spanish-speaking country. Less than 10 minutes left before the race starts.
Located at an altitude of 2240 meters above sea level. The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez is by some distance the highest track on the Formula 1 calendar. Height, of course, has a significant impact on aerodynamics and downforce. Don't ask me to go into this. Williams explains this very well. … I think.
Mexico City is expected to reach 26 degrees Celsius. during the race, the track temperature is currently 53°C. Not as hot as Singapore or Austin, but still quite hot for drivers and cars. Ferrari has bags of dry ice that it passes through the vents to cool the engine.
Mexico is a happy hunting ground for Max Verstappenstarting from 5th place in the bracket. He has won five of the last seven Grands Prix at Hermanos Rodriguez.
No McLaren driver has won in Mexico since Ayrton Senna in 1989 (although there were no races there between 1993 and 2014).
Lewis Hamilton (2016 and 2019) is the only driver in the first two rows of the grid to win in Mexico. He will start third, as in 2019.
So are Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen. are racing three horses for the drivers' title this year, as did Graham Hill, John Surtees and Jim Clark at the Hermanos Rodriguez circuit in the final race of the 1964 Formula One season. Giles Richards takes a trip down memory lane in his new book:
Starting grid
1) Lando Norris (McLaren)
2) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
3) Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
4) George Russell (Mercedes)
5) Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
6) Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
7) Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
8) Isak Hajar (Racing Bulls)
9) Oliver Birman (Hare)
10) Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)
11) Esteban Ocon (Haas)
12) Carlos Sainz (Williams)*
13) Nico Hulkenberg (Sauber)
14) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
15) Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
16) Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber)
17) Alexander Albon (Williams)
18) Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
19) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
20) Franco Colapinto (Alpine)
*Qualified seventh; five-place penalty on the grid
Preamble
Well, what an opportunity for Lando Norris in Mexico City. His qualifying performance yesterday gave him a significant lead over his title rivals in the race, which starts in an hour. The McLaren driver starts from pole, while his teammate and overall leader Oscar Piastri is only 7th and Max Verstappen in the 5th. Charles Leclerc completes the front row, with Lewis Hamilton in third and George Russell in fourth.
I'll give you lap-by-lap details when the Grand Prix starts at 20:00 (GMT). With just five races left in the season and just 40 points between the top three drivers in the standings, this is sure to be crucial to winning the title.
If you have any thoughts about the promotion or the season in general, please contact me. by email. Come on!
