Lando Norris won the Mexico City Grand Prix with a commanding performance. McLaren needed a reaction — and he delivered it. One of the key moments came right away, with a dramatic start in which Verstappen found himself alongside both Ferrari cars and made contact with Charles Leclerc. Both Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc ran wide to avoid a bigger incident: Verstappen more severely, immediately losing the positions he had gained, while Charles Leclerc only widened enough to avoid collision with Norris in Turn 2. The Monegasque believed he had only passed Norris and therefore yielded position only to him. Meanwhile, Norris’s teammate Lewis Hamilton voiced some protest, but for the team and the FIA the matter was closed.
Hamilton the victim of his own error
Shortly afterwards it was Lewis who went wide at Turn 4 and, by not re-joining via the designated track limits, was given a 10-second penalty — a sanction that weighed heavily on his final result. On lap 6 of 71, an aggressive attack by Verstappen on Hamilton led to contact, the Dutchman losing positions and involving also George Russell. Meanwhile Oliver Bearman (Haas) moved from sixth to fourth, then inherited third thanks to Hamilton’s penalty. Bearman defended the podium until lap 50, when he pitted for a second stop (alongside Mercedes drivers, Piastri and Hamilton), which cleared the way for Max Verstappen to go for the podium and mount a late challenge on Leclerc.
Oliver Bearman delivered a career-best fourth place with Haas — a formidable feat rewarded by fans who voted him ‘Driver of the Day’.
Strategy recap
Before deciding which strategy proved best, here’s a quick summary of the choices on offer. In Mexico the scenario matched what Pirelli anticipated, thanks to the decision to “skip” a compound in both Austin and Mexico. In Texas it didn’t work as hoped, but in this case the presence of a tyre that was too hard (the C2) compared with the softer options (C4 and C5) made the difference — particularly given the high thermal degradation from asphalt temperatures close to or exceeding 50 °C. This resulted in much greater strategic divergence.
Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc achieved podiums through the Soft-Medium strategy. Alongside them, Esteban Ocon (in the points) also executed this approach. With the reverse Medium-Soft only Verstappen and Gabriel Bortoleto managed to break into the top ten. Verstappen made optimal use of the Soft C5 tyre, taking third place, aided by the two-stop strategy of those ahead. Tsunoda, Hadjar and Gasly also adopted similar tactics.
Alexander Albon and Franco Colapinto finished with Hard-Soft, while Bearman, Piastri, Kimi Antonelli, Russell, Hamilton and Lance Stroll closed with two-stop S-M-S stints. Among those, only Stroll failed to score points. Sainz, Fernando Alonso, Nico Hülkenberg and Liam Lawson retired.
Red Bull still teaching: Medium-Soft the best strategy
Given Norris’s pace, you could argue he would have won using any strategy — one-stop or two. Considering the slowdowns and battles between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc, the best strategy turned out to be Medium-Soft, adopted by the four-time world champion. The choice proved effective because the Medium compound held up strongly in the early phase when the track was hot, while the Soft tyre responded better at the end with a lighter car.
Two stops open the podium for Verstappen
Verstappen’s ascent from eighth to third was aided by the decision of Bearman, Piastri, Antonelli, Russell and Hamilton to opt for two stops — hoping for a drop in performance that never materialised. The drivers who started on Softs pitted early, indicating a plan for two stops. Antonelli, the first to switch to Mediums, did so on lap 23 — trying to go to the end would have meant an impossible 48-lap stint. Ocon made the longest run: 44 laps on the C4, finishing ninth.
The five drivers made their first stops almost simultaneously. When Verstappen, having started on yellow-coded tyres, switched to Softs on lap 39, Bearman, Antonelli, Russell, Piastri and Hamilton had already done around fifteen laps on Mediums. Verstappen rejoined in eighth, eight seconds behind Hamilton. Ultimately the one-stop proved fastest, and the five two-stop drivers effectively handed the podium spot to Verstappen. If Piastri had tried one stop he might have lost to Verstappen but could have finished fourth ahead of Bearman. At that time, the second stop appeared logical, so it was a defensible choice.
Piastri showed strong pace in the final stint on Softs, overtaking both Mercedes and narrowly missing Oliver Bearman. A poor qualifying is overshadowed by a solid race recovery.
Sainz saves Leclerc’s second place
Leclerc built his second position during his first stint, opening a significant gap on Verstappen. When Max fitted Softs on lap 39, the gap was around 18.6 seconds. That margin shrank but remained sufficient. Sainz’s retirement came at the right moment: he spun in the stadium section and directed his car into a safe zone, but the partially exposed car forced race control to call the Virtual Safety Car, denying Verstappen a chance to attack Leclerc. Charles managed his race brilliantly, but he owes thanks to Sainz for preserving his second place.
Verstappen pays for aggressive start
Verstappen’s overly aggressive early laps – his dive into Turn 1 and attack on Hamilton on lap 6 – cost him. With a different management approach he might have gained more points. But given he was eighth on lap 39, he still did very well. He raced strongly, yet both he and Leclerc share an unofficial debt at the finish. :contentReference[oaicite:21]{index=21}
Tsunoda still outside the points
A brief note on Yuki Tsunoda: early in the race, he might have scored points, but Red Bull delayed his stop to slow the pack and favour Verstappen. Tsunoda attempted the plan, but with little success, allowing Piastri and others to pass. Ultimately the sacrifice was unnecessary and cost him a place in the top ten. He finished eleventh, two seconds behind Bortoleto, the last non-lapped driver.
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