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Graham Read
Formula 1 Correspondent
7:39 AM 28th October 2024
sports

Carlos Sainz Dominates For Ferrari In Mexico

 
Carlos Sainz Dominates For Ferrari In Mexico
Carlos Sainz Dominates For Ferrari In Mexico
Just a week after the United States Grand Prix and Sprint race in Texas, Formula 1 was back in action again this weekend in high-altitude Mexico City for the next round of this year’s World Championship, and it was Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz who emerged with the victory spoils after a peerless victory.

2024 Formula 1 Mexico City Grand Prix

1 Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 1hr40m55.800s
2 Lando Norris (McLaren) +4.705s
3 Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +34.387s

4 Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +44.780s
5 George Russell (Mercedes) +48.536s
6 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) +59.558s
7 Kevin Magnussen (Haas) +1m3.642s
8 Oscar Piastri (McLaren) +1m4.928s
9 Nico Hülkenberg (Haas) Lapped
10 Pierre Gasly (Alpine) Lapped
11 Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) Lapped
12 Franco Colapinto (Williams) Lapped
13 Esteban Ocon (Alpine) Lapped
14 Valtteri Bottas (Sauber) Lapped
15 Zhou Guanyu (Sauber) Lapped
16 Liam Lawson (RB) Lapped
17 Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) Lapped
18 Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) Retired
19 Alex Albon (Williams) Retired
20 Yuki Tsunoda (RB) Retired
In the build-up to the Mexican event, there had been increasing speculation about the future of home driver Sergio Pérez after his ongoing failure to contribute a significant enough points tally to help Red Bull retain the Constructors’ Championship title. The crucial issue is whether Checo, as he has long been nicknamed, will survive to continue next year and, if not, who might replace him. It’s no secret that Red Bull’s senior management is carefully weighing up its 2025 driver line-up options for both the main team and its RB relative, with the retention of Pérez seeming like the least likely option.

Liam Lawson has been slotted into an RB seat for the remainder of this season in place of the dropped Daniel Ricciardo, and the likeable Kiwi performed well in Texas, outpacing teammate Yuki Tsunoda in the Grand Prix. The latter is set though to be given a Red Bull test in Abu Dhabi following the final race of the season to help the assessment of the Japanese driver compared to Lawson, with outright speed, consistency, and quality of technical feedback, as always, the key factors. Add to that list too a tendency not to crash and incur expensive repair bills for the team!

Lawson could potentially replace Pérez at Red Bull alongside Max Verstappen, while Franco Colapinto, currently a rookie driver at Williams and already garnering attention with his performances, could join Tsunoda at RB. Next year Williams will be pairing the incoming Sainz from Ferrari with Alex Albon, and so Argentina’s young Colapinto is in search of a replacement seat if he is to remain on the Formula 1 grid. Just to muddy the F1 paddock Piranha Club waters further, we also need to add into this mix Red Bull’s assertion that Mark Webber, the former F1 driver and now manager of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, is keen to start negotiations with Red Bull about a potential change of team for the rising Australian star. This is driven by the fact that Piastri doesn’t want to risk McLaren giving undue preference to Lando Norris and seeing him as a number two driver.

He gingerly climbed out of his badly damaged W15, but fortunately, the circuit's medical centre confirmed he was uninjured.
While Aston Martin’s veteran 43-year-old driver, Fernando Alonso, was preparing to start his 400th Grand Prix weekend, Mercedes was busy getting ready for 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli, less than half the Spaniard’s age, to get further track experience in Friday’s opening free practice period in Mexico City. The teenage Italian will be 39-year-old Sir Lewis Hamilton’s replacement next season for the Brackley-based team and had been officially announced during September’s Italian Grand Prix weekend at Monza. The youngster had run in George Russell’s car in the first practice session there, but, although starting very quickly, he crashed the car after just 10 minutes. As such, he and the Mercedes team were hoping for something far better from him in the less pressurised environment of Mexico.

Lando Norris qualified third and finished one place better
Lando Norris qualified third and finished one place better
Friday’s opening practice was twice redflagged, firstly for recovery of some debris at Turn 1 and then following contact at Turn 9 between the Williams of Albon and the Ferrari being driven by reserve driver Oliver Bearman. Out front, Russell led the way for Mercedes ahead of Sainz’s Ferrari, with Antonelli posting the 12th fastest time. During the second practice session, which began at 4pm local time on Friday and was extended to 90 minutes to include extensive testing of next year’s Pirelli tyre compounds. Sainz and Piastri topped the timing screens. Russell’s fortunes reversed, though, as the 26-year-old British driver lost control of his car on the Turn 8 kerbs and slammed heavily into the Turn 9 barriers. He gingerly climbed out of his badly damaged W15, but fortunately, the circuit's medical centre confirmed he was uninjured.

...with Russell working hard to keep his teammate at bay, and, with eight laps remaining, Leclerc ran wide at the final corner and gifted second place to Norris...
As for the two drivers’ title rivals, Verstappen and Norris, in Mexico, the stewards rejected McLaren’s request for a review of Norris’ five-second penalty at the previous Grand Prix in Austin due to a lack of any new supporting evidence. Ontrack, Norris was fifth quickest in FP2, whereas ongoing power unit issues for Verstappen, which had plagued his earlier running, remained, and the reigning champion failed to even set a time as his engineers worked to resolve the problem. In Saturday’s final practice hour, the McLarens of Piastri and Norris led the way ahead of Sainz and Verstappen, but, after the crucial qualifying hour, it was Sainz and Verstappen who claimed the front row on the grid.

Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc earned the right to start just to their rear, with Mercedes’ Russell and Hamilton filling row three. Alonso would only line up 13th, but at least he fared better than Piastri, as a driving error meant he would be in a lowly 17th position. There was worse though for the underpressure home favourite Pérez, who blamed brake issues for being only 18th quickest, a performance his boss, Christian Horner, simply described as “massively isappointing." How the Mexican again needed to do better if he wants to survive at the top table of world motorsport.

...news came through that Pérez’s weekend had just got even worse after picking up a five-second penalty for starting ahead of his grid box.
On a far brighter note, there was a palpable mix of excitement and tension in the thin air around the packed Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez, the weekend attendance of 405,00 being a further testament to Formula 1’s ongoing popularity. As Sunday’s race start neared, the drivers were focused on the fact that the run from the grid to the opening righthand corner was the longest of the season, with a powerful slipstream effect potentially helping those behind the polesitter, and, when those famous red lights were extinguished, it was Verstappen who led come the first corner as Sainz left the track and rejoined back in the lead before rightly handing the place back to his Red Bull rival. Meanwhile, to their rear, contact between Albon and Tsunoda left both drivers facing retirement within mere seconds of the start.

Lewis Hamilton finished fourth after battling hard with his Mercedes team-mate George Russell
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth after battling hard with his Mercedes team-mate George Russell
This triggered a Safety Car intervention to enable the removal of the damaged cars, with Verstappen leading from Sainz, Norris, and Leclerc. Then news came through that Pérez’s weekend had just got even worse after picking up a five-second penalty for starting ahead of his grid box. Racing resumed at the start of lap seven, and soon Verstappen and Norris were fighting again, just as they had in Texas a week ago, while running behind the Ferrari duo. The stewards soon declared what seemed a harsh 10-second penalty for Verstappen, whereas Hamilton avoided any such sanction after a very late defensive move on his teammate Russell before the latter swept ahead. As the action continued, it was game over though for Alonso on lap 16 due to overheating issues.

Will Verstappen maintain his advantage over Norris, or will the latter eat further into his rival’s lead? We’ll know soon enough...
Two tours later, the stewards gave a further and more justified 10-second penalty to Verstappen following his clashes with Norris, and the Dutch racer served the combined 20-second punishment during his pit stop on lap 27, rejoining down in 15th position. A flurry of other pit stops followed for the other leading contenders, and by lap 43, a charging Verstappen had climbed back up to sixth place. Out front, Sainz still led from Leclerc and Norris, with Russell working hard to keep his teammate at bay, and, with eight laps remaining, Leclerc ran wide at the final corner and gifted second place to Norris.

After a further three tours, Hamilton eventually found a way past Russell into fourth position after a tremendous intra-team battle, and, with third-placed Leclerc enjoying a large gap ahead of the former, Ferrari brought him in for fresh rubber and sent him back out to claim the extra point for the fastest lap of the race. Come the chequered flag, Sainz, Norris, and Leclerc celebrated on the podium as Hamilton, Russell, and Verstappen completed the top six finishers.

Two penalties from the stewards left Max Verstappen in sixth place
Two penalties from the stewards left Max Verstappen in sixth place
The result reduced Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship to 47 points, and on the Constructors’ front another pointless result for Pérez, who finished 17th as the last remaining car ontrack, helped Red Bull drop to third place behind McLaren and Ferrari.

Formula 1 now heads further south to Brazil, where the famous Interlagos circuit in São Paulo will host the next Grand Prix and a Sprint race in just a few days’ time. When witnessed up close on the track, the sheer pace of F1 cars is always highly impressive, and the complex logistics involved in moving the entire F1 circus from country to country in such short timescales are equally impressive. Will Verstappen maintain his advantage over Norris, or will the latter eat further into his rival’s lead? We’ll know soon enough, as this unpredictable season continues toward its climax.


2024 Formula 1 Drivers’ Championship

1 Max Verstappen 362
2 Lando Norris 315
3 Charles Leclerc 291


2024 Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship

1 McLaren 566
2 Ferrari 537
3 Red Bull 512