2021 Mexican GP: Post Race Analysis

Mexico always has one of the greatest atmospheres for a Formula 1 race, and that gets amplified when the home boy Sergio Perez has a shot at victory.

Red Bull Racing legitimately had the fastest car this weekend, which doesn't come as a surprise as throughout the hybrid era, Mexico has been one of the strongest tracks for Red Bull. Max Verstappen drove a fantastic, completely controlled and dominant race and it was won in Turn 1. Had Max not made that ballsy late brake pass, it could have been a very difficult day as even with the fastest car, the Red Bull had nothing on the straights for the Mercedes. Perez had a very solid race and it was exciting to watch, but as already mentioned and predicted, passing a Mercedes on the long straight was going to be nearly impossible. I did think Red Bull may have missed the chance during the pitstops when Hamilton pitted and got stuck behind Leclerc. Had Perez went on maximum push and pitted the very next lap, it felt like there was a chance to overcut. Of course we don't have all the data and coverage that the teams have, so it's fair to assume keeping Perez out was the better play.

Mercedes have to incredibly disappointed, even though a second place finish for Hamilton is about as good as they could hope for on a damage limitation weekend. Despite being on the dirty side of the track, Hamilton had a good start, while Bottas once again had a poor one. This allowed Max to get right in the tow, and for some reason the Mercedes wall didn't block the track and allowed Max the best position possible. I am sure post race debrief will be heated. Bottas' race gets tanked once he was taken out by Ricciardo, and that makes the WCC much more interesting. What is interesting is once again Bottas struggles horrendously in traffic, but it was observed that his straightline speed was 335 kph with DRS behind Ricciardo, while Hamilton was doing 335 kph with NO DRS, within 2 seconds of a car ahead of him. Different points of the race, so different modes allowed?

AlphaTauri showed that the Honda PU works good at altitude. Though I was suspect their aero philosophy is similar to the A team (RBR), and thus all factors suited their car which made them the 3rd fastest car this weekend. Even though Pierre didn't have anyone to race for 70.5 laps, he deserves big props for a brilliant drive. Tsunoda was very fast this weekend as well, unfortunately his grid penalty put him at the back and was a victim of wrong place wrong time and DNF'd on lap 1.

Ferrari should be reasonably satisfied with the race. Both cars starting on the dirty side was a worry and did hurt their start, but they settled into their race and got through it. They didn't have much for Gasly, but they ran their pace and earned the most points they realistically could hope for. Ferrari's team orders to allow Sainz a go at Gasly was the right call, and letting Leclerc go back passed was also the right call. With McLaren's struggles it was a huge day for points in the Constructors Championship.

Aston Martin had a very good car relative to their usual pace. Vettel drove great and was finally rewarded with a solid 7th place finish. Stroll paid the price from his own sub par driving. The mistake in quali didn't cost him too much as he was starting from the back anyways, but I don't think it helped his confidence and he had a scruffy race that was one to forget.

Alfa Romeo was one of the big surprises of the weekend. Often the second worst team on the grid, the car was good in Mexico! Giovinazzi somehow getting into the top 10 in the opening lap, but just missing out on points. Raikkonen having probably his best race of 2021. It's too bad the TV didn't show much of Kimi's drive, as he was one of the stars of the race.

Alpine had a dreadful qualifying and I didn't expect much of them, but Alonso looked in the zone with his car. Alonso unfortunately had a slow pitstop which might have cost him 8th, but overall he should be quite happy. Ocon fortunately was driving a tank, as not only did Tsunoda drive over his front tire, so did Mick in his Haas! In almost every situation that is a sure DNF, but somehow he stayed in the race. Though it was still a difficult day for Ocon.

McLaren had a miserable race. Lando starting at the back hurt his race badly, and even with Mercedes power could only recover to 10th. Surprisingly even on fresher tires didn't press Alonso in the closing laps. Ricciardo had another recent good qualifying performance, but wrecked his own race but clipping Bottas and damaging his front wing. Similar to Norris, Ricciardo struggled in traffic. At least at this track, the McLaren did not perform well.

Williams have really dropped the ball at the end of the season. A few weeks ago they were battling for points, and now they look like the second worst team again. George Russell is known as Mr Saturday, should also be known as the Sunday Speedbump as his race pace never seems to match his qualifying performance and always becomes a road block for a bunch of drivers that pass him during the race. Latifi unexpectedly finished behind Russell.

Haas was sitting in uncharted waters when Mazepin got up to 11th after turn 1. How he got through to advance that much is still a mystery, but credit to the kid. Too bad for him he is still a terrible driver in a terrible car and finished 1 lap behind next worst finisher, who was already 2 laps down themselves. The Mazepin - Schumacher beef remains a fun topic to follow though.

Drive of the Day: Kimi Raikkonen. The Alfa never belongs in the points, but the car looked good for their standards and he made the most of it. Also made a nice pass around George and no mistakes. Gasly was a notable driver, but had no battles or threats. Perez being awarded DOTD was just more proof it's a popularity contest rather than giving credit to the most deserving driver.

 

I agree. RBR need track position against the Mercedes. Maybe it was a case of how their cars would fall into traffic that prevented an undercut.

 

It's pretty bad when the team pretty much gets disappointed when their #2 beats Hamilton.