1121st F1 GRAND PRIX | 25th MEXICAN GRAND PRIX | 24th GRAND PRIX AT AUTODROMO HERMANOS RODRIGUEZ
2023 POLESITTER: CHARLES LECLERC | 2023 WINNER: MAX VERSTAPPEN
One of the best-attended races of the year, Mexico has had multiple stints on the Formula 1 calendar. Home favourite Sergio Perez finished on the podium in both 2021 and 2022. The 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix is set to take place on October 25-27.
2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX: WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Friday October 25
Free Practice 1 – 12:30pm Local Time / 7:30pm UK Time
Free Practice 2 – 4:00pm Local Time / 11:00pm UK Time
Saturday October 26
Free Practice 3 – 11:30am Local Time / 6:30pm UK Time
Qualifying – 5:00pm Local Time / 10:00pm UK Time
Sunday October 27
The 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix – 2:00pm Local Time / 8:00pm UK Time
2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX: WEEKEND MILESTONES
This weekend, Carlos Sainz, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas become the first drivers to make nine appearances at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, moving clear of Pedro Rodriguez, Jack Brabham and Jo Siffert at the top of the list of most F1 appearances in Mexico.
Victory for Max Verstappen at the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix would see him extend the record for most consecutive wins in Mexico to four. He has won every race in Mexico since 2021.
Lewis Hamilton currently leads the way for most podium finishes in Mexico, with six. His record tally of top three finishes could be equalled by Max Verstappen at the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix.
READ MORE IN MILESTONES AND RECORDS TO BREAK
LEARN MORE ABOUT THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX
WHAT HAS CHANGED AT THE CIRCUIT SINCE LAST YEAR?
Not much has changed at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez since the last Mexico City Grand Prix. Walls have been realigned and extended at a number of corners, while resurfacing work has taken place from Turns 12 to 15 and in small areas of the pit lane.
HOW MANY DRS ZONES WILL THERE BE AT THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Like last year, there are three DRS zones at the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix. There are two DRS detection points and three activation zones, which were located on the main straight, between Turns 3 & 4 and between Turns 11 & 12.
AUTODROMO HERMANOS RODRIGUEZ TRACK GUIDE
After years of rumours, Formula 1 returned to Mexico City in 2015 with a capacity crowd lining the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez track. The high altitude circuit has provided plenty of memorable moments during its three stints in the sport.
Mexico became familiar with motorsport in the early 1950s when the road race Carrera Panamericana began to be held. The rally was widely regarded as the most dangerous anywhere in the world, and regularly attracted racing stars from Formula 1. There was at least one fatality in every running of the race between 1950 and 1954, including the controversial death of a vulture in the 1952 event.
It wasn’t long before the country wanted its own permanent international racing circuit, and so one was built in the Magdalena Mixhuca area of Mexico City. The building of the track coincided with the rise of the Rodriguez brothers, Ricardo and Pedro, hence the desire for a Mexican Grand Prix was strong.
The race was run as a non-championship round in 1962. Ricardo Rodriguez, who was just nineteen, was a Ferrari driver but, as the event was a non-championship round, Ferrari declined to enter and instead Rodriguez entered in a Rob Walker Racing Lotus car. His presence in the event was enough to fill the grandstands. There was to be a tragic outcome though, as Rodriguez crashed at the ferocious Peraltada corner and died as a result.
READ MORE IN OUR ULTIMATE TRACK GUIDE
WHO WILL BE IN THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX PRESS CONFERENCES?
The world’s media will have the opportunity to talk to the drivers ahead of the on-track action. The drivers appearing in the press conference for this race are:
Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
Nico Hülkenberg (Haas)
Sergio Perez (Red Bull)
Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
Zhou Guanyu (Sauber)
The media will also be talking to prominent members of Formula 1’s teams in a separate press conference over the race weekend. The team members appearing in the press conference are:
Mike Krack (Aston Martin)
Ayao Komatsu (Haas)
Christian Horner (Red Bull)
WHO WILL BE THE RACE DIRECTOR AT THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Niels Wittich will be the race director at the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix.
WHO WILL BE THE DRIVER STEWARD AT THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Each weekend a former Formula 1 driver, or a driver from another prominent series of motorsport, joins the stewards to help judge any incidents from a drivers’ perspective. The Driver Steward this weekend is Johnny Herbert.
WHICH TYRE COMPOUNDS WILL BE USED AT THE 2024 MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Like last year, Pirelli will supply the C3, C4 and C5 tyre compounds for the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix weekend.
WHAT HAPPENED LAST TIME AT THE MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Verstappen secured another Mexican victory in the red-flagged 2023 Mexico City Grand Prix, where Perez crashed out on Lap 1 of his home race.
Daniel Ricciardo was the star of qualifying at the 2023 Mexico City Grand Prix, reaching Q3 for the first time in the 2023 season and setting the fourth fastest lap time. Max Verstappen qualified alongside his old team-mate on the second row of the grid, but the front row was locked-out by the two Ferrari drivers, with Charles Leclerc securing pole position by 0.067 seconds from team-mate Carlos Sainz.
Sergio Perez started fifth for the Mexico City Grand Prix but it was game over at the Mexican’s home race at Turn 1. Verstappen pulled between the two Ferraris at the start, making it three-wide on the run to the first corner. A good start from Perez allowed him to climb up to third and as Sainz dropped back slightly, Verstappen, Leclerc and Perez went three-wide into the opening turn. Contact between Leclerc and Perez sent the Red Bull flying.
Verstappen assumed the lead, with both Leclerc and Perez’s cars damaged. Perez pulled into the pits at the end of Lap 1 and did not return to the track. The next few laps passed without incident, aside from a brief yellow flag for contact between Yuki Tsunoda and Kevin Magnussen at Turn 1 and a brief Virtual Safety Car period to remove debris from the Lap 1 collision.
Ricciardo had a strong start to the race, holding onto his fourth position. He was passed on Lap 11 by Lewis Hamilton, moving down to fifth. Hamilton then set off after those ahead of him, with Sainz’s Ferrari the next target; though he failed to pass before Sainz made his first pit stop on Lap 31. Hamilton had stopped earlier than the Ferrari and pulled off a successful undercut to gain track position.
After a wide moment on the main straight laps earlier, Kevin Magnussen crashed out of the race on Lap 33 following a failure at the rear of his car, suffering a big impact with the tyre barriers. The Safety Car was deployed before the red flag was shown a few laps later due to the tyre barriers requiring repairs.
Verstappen had pitted from the lead at the end of Lap 19, while Leclerc had pitted just a few laps before the red flag was shown; in hindsight wasting an opportunity to have led at the restart and make a free pit stop under the red flag.
The race resumed on Lap 36 with a standing start, at which Verstappen retained the lead. Leclerc came under pressure from Hamilton but the Ferrari driver was able to stay ahead. Hamilton later made his move on Leclerc on Lap 40, passing the Ferrari at Turn 1. The first corner was a hotspot for contact in the race, with Tsunoda and Oscar Piastri making contact there on Lap 48 and again on Lap 49, spinning the AlphaTauri and dropping an angry Tsunoda out of the points.
AlphaTauri lost another position on Lap 60, with Ricciardo having to relinquish sixth place to McLaren’s Lando Norris – who was on a fine drive from 17th on the grid. Norris had passed his team-mate Piastri a few laps earlier in a co-ordinated move by the team. Piastri was unable to follow his team-mate through, with Ricciardo finishing seventh to secure his first points of the year.
Lance Stroll and Valtteri Bottas made contact in the stadium section in the closing stages but Verstappen had an unchallenged run to another victory, finishing ahead of Hamilton and Leclerc. Sainz finished fourth, while Norris made up another position in the closing stages, passing George Russell for fifth place.
WHAT’S THE FASTEST EVER LAP AT THE MEXICO CITY GRAND PRIX?
Attending the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix? Learn more about visiting Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in the F1Destinations Travel Guide.