Mexico - Race

With the driver's championship so close together and every point worth fighting for, emotions were high going into the 20th Grand Prix of the season. The drivers making up the top four, Sainz, Verstappen, Norris, and Leclerc, all had their eyes set on a race win and none of them was willing to back down from a fight, no matter how dirty it could get.

The action began even before the cars got past turn 1. Tsunoda tried to get past Albon but got a bit too close for comfort, causing the two cars to make contact. The VCARB hit the wall and spun out, losing tires in the process. The Williams managed to drive further but also retired before the lap was over. The incident brought out the safety car. 

But before the order in which the cars would slowly make their way around the track as the debris was cleaned up was set, some changes occurred in the front of the field. Verstappen had a great start and became the new race leader, getting past Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, while Hamilton found a way past his teammate and Hulkenberg managed to move up two places. Perez and Piastri, the two drivers from the teams battling for the constructor's championship who started the race from the back, both tried to make up as many places as they could when the lights went out, but only one of them managed to do so. The Red Bull driver gained 5 places, while Piastri stayed in 17th. The home hero's happiness was greatly diminished before the safety car period ended as he received a 5-second penalty for a false start. 

The safety car left the track at the end of lap 6, leaving Verstappen to get the race back to its proper pace. DRS was enabled on lap 8 and the drivers immediately took advantage of it. On lap 9, Sainz found a way past the Red Bull and reclaimed his lead. Even after his great move, the situation in the front was far from settled as the four top cars were all within each other's DRS.

With Verstappen and Norris side-by-side, some aggressive racing was bound to take place. The Brit tried to get past his championship rival and got pushed off track. He tried the maneuver once more, this time to the effect of both cars going beyond track limits. Verstappen came out in front but it was unclear whether he would be allowed to keep the position. The answer came a few laps down the line, in the form of two 10-second penalties, one for forcing a driver off track, and another for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. And while the two rivals fought one another, Leclerc took advantage of their distraction and passed them both, making it a Ferrari 1-2. 

At lap 15, Russell took P5 back from his teammate. At the same time, Fernando Alonso drove down to the pits and was forced to retire his car due to mechanical issues. It was a big blow to the driver, especially since the race marked his 400th Grand Prix. 

Even with the 5-second penalty he had been given, Perez was determined to show his best racing to the thousands of people who gathered around the track to support him. He fought hard, first with Lawson and then with Stroll. Unfortunately, as he tried to find his way past the VCARB, the two cars made contact, which resulted in significant damage to the side of his Red Bull. After a pit stop, the home hero fell to the back of the grid and was unable to make significant progress throughout the rest of the race. 

Verstappen served his penalty at lap 26 and came out of the pits 15th, having quite a lot of time to make up if he wanted to finish the day with some points to add to his tally. It didn't look too promising for him, but if there is one thing to know about Max Verstappen, it's that he doesn't give up easily. The driver put his all into every corner and by lap 31 had managed to move all the way to P10. 

The two Ferraris pitted shortly after each other, not losing track position in the process. Behind them, after Russel's pit stop, Norris found his way back to 3rd, while the Mercedes driver settled for 6th, which was really a net 4th, as the two cars in front of him, Lawson and Piastri, had not yet pitted. Once they changed their tires, the true order of the top 6 was restored, putting Hamilton in 5th and Verstappen in 6th. The Dutchman had managed to make up 9 places in the span of 15 laps. P7 and P8 were occupied by the two Haas cars. Colapinto found himself in 9th, although only temporarily as, until lap 48, he was using the same tires he had started the race on. 

At the front, Norris was slowly closing the gap to Leclerc, putting pressure on the Ferrari driver. With less than 10 laps left in the race, the Norris managed to get within striking distance of the Monegasque and was preparing to attack. In the end, he didn't need to try too hard as on lap 63, Leclerc went off the road when he tried to get the best exit out of a corner, giving the Brit the perfect opportunity for an overtake. 

Fights all around the field were not letting up until the moment the checkered flag was waved. The two Mercedes spent the last couple of laps fighting for P4 and on lap 66, Hamilton found a way past his teammate and claimed a few additional points, Further down the back, Colapinto tried to overtake Lawson. The encounter proved to be disastrous for the New Zealander, as the two cars made contact, which was strong enough to damage his front wing. He had no choice but to drive into the pits for a quick change, losing a few places in the process. His new, soft tires gave him the fastest lap, but only temporarily, as on their final laps, both Leclerc, who knew that he couldn't catch up to Norris, and Perez, who had nothing to lose, were determined to try and get it. In the end, it was the Ferrari driver who was fastest, adding a point to the 15 he was already getting for finishing in third place. 

But the real glory belonged to Carlos Sainz. He had said before that he dreamed of getting one more win with Ferrari before moving on to Williams, and that dream came true in Mexico. For the fourth time in his career, he stood at the top step of the podium, this time with Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc on both his sides. 

Ferrari's double podium gave them more than enough points to move into P2 in the constructor's standing, getting ahead of Red Bull. Now, only 29 points separate them from McLaren. The race also had an impact on the driver's championship as it decreased the gap between the leader, Verstappen, and Norris. Now, 47 points separate the Brit and his first WDC. 

Order of the grid: 

1. Carlos Sainz

2. Lando Norris

3. Charles Leclerc

4. Lewis Hamilton

5. George Russel

6. Max Verstappen 

7. Kevin Magnussen

8. Oscar Piastri

9. Nico Hulkenberg

10. Pierre Gasly 

11. Lance Stroll

12. Franco Colapinto

13. Esteban Ocon

14. Valtteri Bottas 

15. Zhou Guanyu

16. Liam Lawson

17. Sergio Perez

DNF: Fernando Alonso, Alex Albon, Yuki Tsunoda