The Dutchman arrives at the Hermanos Rodríguez racetrack with 287.5 points and at the top of the standings, followed by Lewis Hamilton with 275.5 units.
With his Mexican teammate Sergio Pérez as host, the Dutch driver Max Verstappen (Red Bull) will resume his challenge to the current champion of Formula 1, the British Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), this weekend when the Grand Prix of Mexico.
This eighteenth date of serial 2021 will take place between Friday and Sunday in the Hermanos Rodríguez Racetrack in Mexico City It has a circuit 4,304 kilometers in length in which 71 laps will be made to total a route of 305,354 kilometers.
This track has been good for both Verstappen and Hamilton, who will arrive as 1 and 2 in the drivers’ championship standings. The Dutchman is the leader with 287.5 points, followed by the British with 275.5 points.
At the Mexican Grand Prix of 2016, Hamilton was made of the pole position and he climbed to the top of the podium that same year and then also in 2019; by his side, Verstappen won it twice in a row, in 2017 and 2018.
In Mexico, at 2,248 meters above sea level, the Red Bull driver will seek his ninth win of the season and the Mercedes steering wheel will come out on the sixth.
“Is very important for me and the team to try to win the next three races now that we are fighting for the championship, ”said Verstappen.
Sergio Pérez, at home
Although globally the attention will be fixed on the duel of Verstappen and Hamilton, on the local stage the spotlights will point to Mexican star Sergio Pérez.
The Czech Pérez has not been able to shine in the Grand Prix of Mexico: with Force India he was eighth in 2015, tenth in 2016 and seventh in 2017; with Racing Point he dropped out in 2018 and was seventh in 2019.
In his first season with Red Bull, the Mexican pilot has four podiums (three third places and one first, in Azerbaijan) and march in fourth place in the ranking with 150 points, 35 from third place held by Finn Valtteri Bottas.
In Mexico the fans visualize an ideal scenario with Pérez as the winner, Verstappen in second place and Hamilton completing the podium as third; but at the same time it is feared that the Czech he would have to make a race not to go for the victory but to seek that of his partner Verstappen.
“Today Max is fighting to win the drivers’ championship and as a team it is important to support him in that”, Pérez accepted and in the face of an eventual sacrifice for his teammate he reflected: “We should see what circumstances we are in in the race, but at the end of the day we are riders who work as a team, the main result must be given to the team.”
Pérez is aware that the competition for the constructors’ title is also very close. The Mercedes team leads with 460.5 points, followed by Red Bull with 437.5 points.
“We are fighting both the team and drivers championship, that’s the big picture,” said the Mexican driver. (D)
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