This past weekend it was lights out in Mexico City at the Mexican Grand Prix. This was a home race for Red Bull Driver Sergio “Checo” Perez. This track is always a favorite and the fans definitely bring the energy at every race. The attention was on Checo to bring home a trophy for Red Bull for two reasons. One he is the star in Mexico and two he is extremely close in points to Hamilton for P2 of the championship.
The practice sessions went relatively smoothly for Checo, or at least more than his usual. Practice one was P3, practice two he got P5, and practice three was P3. Moving to qualifying there was a ton of backup within the pit lane, which made the teams focus on the timing in which they would need to release their cars onto the track. Red Bull made a strategic error and did not release their cars at quite the appropriate time. Thus, Verstappen gets P3 and Checo P5. And at the front of the grid were both Ferraris, with Charles Leclerc in pole position.
The minute lights went out both Verstappen and Perez quickly enclosed Leclerc’s Ferrari. This tactic has been done before, but the timing of a double overtake on a turn must be impeccable. Max is very good at this, but Checo… not so much. Checo hit the brakes seconds before he would be able to make that turn. His rear tire then hit Leclerc’s and he went spinning off the track. This was an absolutely devastating watch because Checo had the race almost at his fingertips. He is in a winning car, which is absolutely 100% proven by Verstappen. This is clearly an issue with driver skills. If Checo had been patient and waited for that overtake it is very likely Red Bull would have signaled for Max to let him lead the race. This is because one Checo is at his home race and two they want him to get P2 in the championship that Max no longer needs points for.
Daniel Ricardo Red Bull’s reserve driver and most prominent prospect for next season did an outstanding job at holding his own in this race. While he does not have a seat at Red Bull, he drives for Alpha Tauri, Red Bull’s lower division team. He is in a worse car than Checo by far, but he out-qualified him and out-performed him. Lewis Hamilton also made his way to the front of the grid and ended P2 with the fastest lap. He is now showing his skill as his car no longer works against him. The improvements made to the vehicle could very well aid Lewis in getting P2 for the championship. Charles Leclerc ultimately ended in P3, it is not a bad ending but still shows the need for improvement on Ferrari’s part. And as per usual, Verstappen finished P1.
The next race will be in São Paulo, Brazil on November 5th. After that is the Vegas Grand Prix on November 19th. And to conclude the calendar, the Abu Dhabi GP is on November 26th.
I think that it is sad that Checo did not show out for his home crowd, but it is exciting that Lewis Hamilton’s team seems to finally be working together to make the car perfect for driving. I had no clue that there was a race in Las Vegas, that one should be interesting, and I might follow up with looking for who win p2 at the end of the season. I have loved learning more about Formula One and I hope that Daniel Ricardo gets Checo’s spot, just for you.