Mexican Grand Prix Review
Mexican Grand Prix Review: Verstappen dominates to extend championship lead as Red Bull close in on Mercedes in constructors' race
Max Verstappen edged closer to a first world title with a dominant display at the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Red Bull star holds a 19-point lead over seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton with only four races to go for the Brit to knock the Dutchman off the top of the leader board.
Where the race was won and lost
Red Bull were favourites to win this weekend, meaning that the Mercedes 1-2 in qualifying led by Valtteri Bottas came as a surprise.
Yet, when the race began, it was immediately advantage Red Bull and that never looked like changing.
Verstappen eased past both Mercedes cars with teammate and home favourite Sergio Perez also starting well, while Bottas spun and ended up at the back of the field.
The Finn was stuck in 18th following the opening lap chaos, and was never able to recover.
With Bottas at the back, Hamilton had no support and quite frankly never looked like threatening Verstappen.
The Dutchman only briefly lost his lead when cars were pitting, with Hamilton forced to fight off Perez for second position as his title rival moved further and further ahead.
All Verstappen had to do was not make any mistakes and he managed the race perfectly, sealing a 19th career win and ninth of 2021 alone by a margin of 16 seconds.
Hamilton held off Perez for second, with Perez settling for third and sealing another podium finish as he became the first home driver to finish in the top three at the Mexico Grand Prix.
What else went on
After a chaotic start which saw Bottas fall down the field and Haas’ Mick Schumacher and AlphaTauri’s Yuki Tsunoda retire, the main focus of the action was Hamilton and Perez’s duel.
There was little drama elsewhere with arguably the most impressive performer being AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, who found himself in fourth after the opening lap and comfortably held on to that position.
It was another solid day for Ferrari with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz finishing in fifth and sixth respectively, while Sebastian Vettel picked up an impressive seventh place for Aston Martin.
There was also a strong run from Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen who managed to finish in eighth place, with Alpine’s Fernando Alonso in ninth.
It was, however, a disappointing day for McLaren, with Lando Norris only squeezing into the points in tenth and Daniel Ricciardo finishing down in 12th.
Title race watch
Verstappen sits on 312.5 points and Hamilton on 293.5 with races in Brazil, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi left for the Brit to close the gap.
Hamilton would retake the lead if he won a race and Verstappen crashed out or finished outside the points, but momentum is with the Dutchman.
Perez has closed the gap to Bottas in third to just ten points after his third straight podium, which also makes the constructors fight closer.
Mercedes hold 478.5 points with Red Bull just a point behind having closed the gap significantly in recent races - largely thanks to Perez’s return to form.
Yesterday’s good results for Leclerc and Sainz mean Ferrari overtakes McLaren in third place, leading Norris and Ricciardo’s team by 13.5 points.
McLaren were favourites to finish third at the start of the season, but now find themselves in a real battle for the constructor’s podium.
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