Max Verstappen crossed the thin white line of his genius in a chaotic, bitter and potentially dangerous Mexico City Grand Prix in which his world championship lead over Lando Norris was cut by his own hand.
And suddenly, the title fight is alive and well.
Verstappen, never a man to shy away from motorsport’s equivalent of a bar fight, was unlikely to give in to his friend, the British McLaren driver, who only days earlier had admitted he couldn’t live with such talent. .
In jaw-dropping scenes, Verstappen received two separate 10-second penalties minutes apart for his pugilism in turns four and eight in trying to resist Norris’ papaya car attempting to overtake him on lap 10 of 71.
The result at the end of this dramatic race was second place for Norris, who overtook Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc with nine laps to go, and sixth for Verstappen. That reduces the defending champion’s lead to 47 points, with 120 still up for grabs heading into Sao Paulo, Brazil, on Sunday, after which there will be three rounds remaining.
Carlos Sainz achieved his second victory of the season in a Mexico City Grand Prix that left him breathless
Lando Norris had to settle for second place but reduced Max Verstappen’s lead to 47 points
The Dutchman had to serve two 10-second penalties for aggressive defensive work.
While the focus is rightly on the title fight and the skirmish that unfolded on this overcast afternoon, we must take our hats off to Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, a brilliant winner from pole position.
The 900-yard drag to the first turn was always going to fall under the microscope after last week’s first turn drama in Austin. There, Norris started on pole but gave Verstappen unfathomable space on the inside.
The Dutchman doesn’t need a welcome mat. He walked right in the front door without knocking and finished the race in third place, behind Norris in fourth place. That was the context of everything that was going to develop.
Verstappen moved away from second place on the grid very quickly and was soon alongside Sainz. He reached the first corner but swerved while trying to turn. Sainz, on the outside, crossed the grass and reappeared in front. But he gave him back the place.
The nearby dance was a sign of things to come. Before arriving at the theater in the middle of the initial platoon. RB’s Yuki Tsunoda charged around the inside, his rear wheel intertwining with the front of Alex Albon’s Williams. Tsunoda’s right rear rolled away.
His RB was partially in the air and ended up upside down in the barrier. The safety car was called. Tsunoda and Albon were outside, though both unharmed.
After a six-lap interval, the safety car retired. Verstappen scrambled before diving effectively away. A smart restart that left Sainz unable to jump. Norris stayed where he started: third.
Sainz harassed Verstappen and managed to take the lead at the start of lap nine. Lo and behold, that brought Verstappen and Norris together again, in second and third place. The stage was already set.
It was a good day for Mercedes as Lewis Hamilton came fourth and George Russell fifth.
Norris accused Verstappen of ‘dangerous’ driving after he contacted him twice
The Dutch Red Bull driver faced pressure from Norris and the two collided during the race.
Seconds later, the rivals resumed their fierce fight and, taking advantage of the commotion, Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc intervened to achieve the team’s one-two with Sainz.
Verstappen then radioed his support team: ‘Dude, what can I do with an empty battery? What is this stupid mode?
Surely it was only a matter of time before they came face to face. Norris insisted on the outside of turn four, but Verstappen pushed him too much. Norris ran across the grass and got back in front of the Red Bull.
The McLaren man attempted to regain the spot at Turn Eight, learning from last week when he failed to do so in the closing stages, at his own cost, but Verstappen veered off the road, putting pressure on Norris. With nowhere to go, he left too.
The radio turned on. Of the turn four dispute, Norris said: “This guy is dangerous.” It’s the same as last time. I’ll be on the wall in a minute. I was in front throughout the entire curve.
And about the mess at turn eight: “There has to be a penalty for Max, or the place will have to be returned to him.”
The stewards investigated, although not for long. Verstappen, who was in second, was given a 10-second penalty for “forcing another driver off the track” at Turn Four, double Norris’ penalty for overtaking outside the white lines last weekend. .
‘Ten!?’ Verstappen exclaimed. “That’s pretty impressive.”
His race engineer, Gianpiero ‘GP’ Lambiase, responded: ‘There were a lot of complaints. A lot.’
Ferrari had both drivers on the podium: Sainz won and Charles Leclerc came third.
Haas achieved a good result, with Kevin Magnussen seventh and Nico Hulkenberg ninth.
But that was not the end. A few minutes later, Verstappen received a second 10-second penalty for the incident at turn eight: “leaving the track and gaining an advantage.” Both had to be treated at their pit stop.
“Wow,” Norris said when informed of the award.
Verstappen pitted on lap 26. He drove third and came out in 15th place, 41 seconds behind Norris. When the Englishman stopped later, the margin was 17.6 seconds.
Verstappen, in a decent Red Bull, was always going to progress through the relative stagnation in front of him, but would never make an impression at the front again.
The Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is a roasting pot that invites pressure. Nowhere is there more jumping, dancing or shouting than inside Foro Sol, the old baseball stadium where the circuit runs.
Among the 30,000 people there were many red shirts, but the Ferrari fans were outnumbered and outnumbered by the Sergio Pérez supporters.
On Saturday his performance in qualifying was brief, as he was eliminated in Q1. The pressure on Pérez increases at Red Bull. He is 34 years old and suffering from a crisis of confidence.
He has a contract for next season, but it is almost certain that he will not fulfill it. As I understand it, it is likely to gently guide you out the exit door and into as dignified a retreat as the choreography allows.
The pressure increases on Sergio Pérez after qualifying in 18th place and could only climb to 17th
This was Sainz’s first victory since March and helps Ferrari in the tight battle for second place.
Encouraged by the echo on the grid – ‘Checo, Checo’ – he went straight up to 13th place. Suddenly, everything seemed a little more rosy for the poor guy, but he had left his box. Consequently, a five-second penalty slowed their progress. He finished in a dismal 17th place.
Lewis Hamilton hasn’t peaked in this his final year at Mercedes, but he won his long fight with teammate George Russell to finish one place ahead of him in fourth, behind Leclerc in third.
