The McLaren driver had looked to be a strong contender to challenge for pole position in Mexico City, after showing some impressive form in Friday practice.But it all went wrong at the start of qualifying when his first banker run on medium tyres was aborted following an instruction from the pitwall.That left him with everything to do on his final effort, when there would be no margin for error …Keep reading
After a difficult time through the practice sessions in Mexico City, where their SF-23 car appeared to be no match for the pace-setting Red Bull, the duo sprung a major surprise at the start of the Q3 qualifying segment.Their cars suddenly came alive and it helped Leclerc and Sainz take the provisional top two slots on the grid – which were then secured as their main challengers were unable to …Keep reading
With the prospect of breaking his own record for the most wins in a season should he chalk up a 16th success of 2023 in Mexico, Verstappen enjoyed a strong start to the weekend by topping both FP1 and FP2 in his RB19.The three-time Mexico GP winner paced Alex Albon’s Williams in the opening session by 0.095s in the opening session before lowering his 1m19.718s benchmark to a 1m18.686s that shaded …Keep reading
Three-time world champion Verstappen was fastest in Free Practice 1 by 0.095s from Alex Albon’s Williams, and also paced FP2 with a fastest time of 1m18.686s ahead of McLaren driver Lando Norris.Mexico GP FP1 results: Verstappen fastest from Albon ClaNºDriver Car / Engine Time Delay Laps 1 1Max VerstappenRed Bull/Honda …Keep reading
After Daniel Ricciardo, Norris, Verstappen and Alex Albon had enjoyed brief spells in the top spot during the opening quarter of the one-hour session, Verstappen seized it again with a 1m19.511s set on the standard 2023 Pirelli C4 mediums rather than the prototype variety he had started on before pitting to get a visor tear-off removed from his rear suspension. That stood as the benchmark for the …Keep reading
Director of engineering Ayao Komatsu says that the Englishman, who had a run in a two-year Ferrari SF21 as part of his preparation for his race weekend debut, “didn’t put a foot wrong.”He ended the session in 15th place, three spots and 0.3 seconds behind team-mate Nico Hulkenberg, who is celebrating his 200th grand prix in Mexico.”I don’t think we can fault him,” said Komatsu. “He’s done really …Keep reading
F1 tweaked the sprint format it uses at six races in 2023 by moving qualifying for the main grand prix to Friday afternoon, followed by sprint qualifying and the race on Saturday ahead of Sunday’s main grand prix.Cars are placed under parc ferme rules after Friday morning’s single free practice session, which means teams are locked into their car setups and subject to strict limits on the items …Keep reading
The FIA only measured the planks of four cars after the race, and found that those of Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were illegal, leading to the disqualifications of the two drivers.The cars of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris were deemed legal, but despite the 50% failure rate on the bumpy COTA track, the FIA stuck with its usual protocols and opted not to sample any other cars further down the …Keep reading
Leclerc’s SF23 was one of the four cars checked for plank wear after the finish and was found to be in breach of the regulations, alongside the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton, meaning the Monegasque driver lost his sixth place.Ferrari was caught out by Austin’s bumpy Circuit of the Americas, with the added difficulty of the sprint format preventing teams from making changes to the floor after …Keep reading
The number of fans and VIPs in the paddock in last year’s race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez led to security issues, with spectators crowding hospitality units and accosting drivers.Alpine’s Pierre Gasly noticed somebody had opened his backpack, while some of his peers had also flagged that the number of paddock dwellers had been out of control.Gasly raised the issue again at the Italian GP …Keep reading