Mexico City, November 8 (US): Red Bull has won itself once at the Formula One Festival.
Max Verstappen won the Mexico City Grand Prix with a dominant race on Sunday to extend the season’s lead in the championship over Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.
His teammate Sergio Perez was the first Mexican driver in racing history to not only lead the race, but also win the podium when he finished third.
The result pulled Red Bull almost equally with Mercedes in the multi-million dollar team championship at the end of the season, according to the Associated Press.
As Verstappen and Perez basked in songs of “Olé! Ole!” from the massive crowd during the coronation ceremony and Perez’s father violently waved the Mexican flag, Hamilton couldn’t help but watch and listen.
He had to know time was running out and race to catch Verstappen in his quest for a record eighth F1 season title.
Verstappen now leads Hamilton in the championship by 19 points with four races remaining, starting next week in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Verstappen won in 2019 and will likely be favored again.
The two have traded the lead multiple times this season, even colliding twice, in Formula One’s narrowest pursuit of the title in years.
“Today at their breakneck speed, if they worked to move that to the next, we might be in trouble, or we’d be in trouble,” Hamilton said.
Verstappen certainly doesn’t take anything for granted. The 24-year-old Dutchman is chasing his first F1 championship and racking up his ninth win of the season, second in a row and third in Mexico City in four years.
“I don’t believe in momentum,” Verstappen said. “Every race we have to bring out the details. … It will be really tight and exciting to the end.”
Hamilton and team-mate Valtteri Bottas got a big surprise in qualifying when the Mercedes cars got their first front-row lockout of the season. Bottas was first, Hamilton second and Verstappen and Perez third and fourth.
Their advantage only lasts a few seconds.
Verstappen withdrew from his streak and used the slipstream behind Bottas on the long starting line to grab the lead from the first corner. Bottas was bugged by McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo and rolled his car, bringing him down in the back.
That left Hamilton in the Red Bull sandwich: Verstappen up front and Perez right behind, with Bottas not in play to help him defend his position.
“I went from third to first, and basically made this race,” Verstappen said.
Even if Mercedes finishes early, Hamilton probably won’t be able to hold on to the win. He had suggested on Saturday that Red Bull cars would be too quick to deny over a long race.
The pass was done much faster than anyone at Mercedes would have liked. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff was so upset after the race that Verstappen was able to easily make the move. Knocking in the back, Bottas finished 15th.
Mercedes now leads Red Bull by just one point in the team maker’s championship.
“We had two cars up front and they seemed to open the sea for Max to spin outside,” Wolff told Sky Sports F1. “Even so, even with a spin after that (and) a complete loss of points, it would have been 3rd or 4th. It’s annoying to say the least.”
Verstappen soon began zooming into the distance. That left Hamilton playing in defense against Perez in a desperate bid to hold the crucial championship points needed to keep Verstappen in sight in the title fight.
The crowd cheered when Perez briefly advanced past Hamilton and Verstappen for new tyres. He came close to Hamilton in the final laps but couldn’t take the final step to pass him for second. Instead, Perez settled for a third consecutive podium finish for the first time in his career.
“Now it’s time for some tequila!” Perez eventually told his team.
“To be on the podium at a grand prix in your own home is very special,” Perez said. “Today, I wanted more. I wanted to win the race… at the end of the day we are very competitive, finishing third (and) not really enjoying it. Today is one of those days that I have to enjoy.”