Formula 1 Mexico Grand Prix Prediction: Verstappen is looking for a continuation of the winning streak

With three wins and two second places in the last five races, Max Verstappen has significantly improved his points tally and is back in contention for the championship. The aforementioned series of results really struck fear into the bones of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Max will try to continue it at the Mexico City Grand Prix. They will be looking for their sixth win in that city and sixth overall this season. Last week's US Grand Prix was almost perfect for Max Verstappen. The Red Bull driver was twice the fastest in qualifying and twice won races in one weekend. Of course, once in the sprint race and once in the classic Grand Prix race. With the third victory in the last four races, Verstappen is back in the fight for the championship title, and defending the title no longer looks like an impossible mission. And let's remember that he went to the summer break with a minus of 97 points compared to the leader in the standings.

Mexico GP

Just seven days after Austin, in which Verstappen easily collected all the prizes that could be collected, it's Mexico City's turn. The Rodriguez brothers' track in the capital of Mexico is Max's lucky hunting ground, as he has won as many as five times in the last seven visits to the location. Now he will try to reach his sixth in Mexico, and also his sixth overall this season. Of the active drivers in Mexico, only Lewis Hamilton (twice) and Carlos Sainz won last year. If we take a look back in time, the race in Mexico was held from 1963 to 1970 and again from 1986 to 1992. Jim Clark, Alain Prost, and Nigel Mansell each have two GP victories. Verstappen's five victories keep Red Bull at the top of the team's multiple wins list, with Lotus, Ferrari, Williams, Mercedes, and McLaren each winning three times.

Norris won the pole in Mexico! Verstappen and Piastri were sloppy

Qualifying at the Mexico City Grand Prix went excellently for Lando Norris. The Briton won the pole position in his McLaren, and his main rivals in the fight for the title failed quite a bit. Max Verstappen finished qualifying in fifth place, and Oscar Piastri only in eighth place. Lando Norris will start from first place in the 20th race of the season, and next to him will be Charles Leclerc in Ferrari. Excellent qualifications for the Italian team were completed by Lewis Hamilton by winning third place. George Russell in Mercedes had the fourth time, while Max Verstappen with his Red Bull won only the fifth starting position. Very unconvincing during qualifying was Oscar Piastri in the second McLaren, and in Q3 he won a rather weak eighth place, but he will start seventh because Carlos Sainz in Williams was in front of him, who carries the penalty of losing five starting places from the last race.

Piastri: It's a bit mysterious to me why I'm so far behind

The leading driver of the championship took only eighth place in qualifying at the Mexico City Grand Prix. He says that it is not entirely clear to him where such a big gap behind his teammate came from. Oscar Piastri arrived at the race in Mexico with a 14-point advantage over teammate Lando Norris, but after Saturday's qualifying in Mexico City, it became clear that the Australian has a big problem. Norris won the pole position, while Piastri was only eighth in the final qualifying round. He was more than half a second behind his teammate, but it was not a problem of a weak lap or some kind of mistake. Oscar has been noticeably slower than Lando all weekend, and worst of all for him, he doesn't know why. "The gap was big in qualifying, and it's been big all weekend. There were some things where I felt I could sort them out and make a little progress, but not all of them were like that. I felt like I did a solid job in qualifying, and it seemed like the car was also solid. The loss of time is a bit mysterious to me," said Piastri.

Verstappen does not expect a place on the podium after the fifth place in qualifying

Max Verstappen was pretty resigned after a poor qualifying result at the Rodriguez brothers' track in Mexico City. He will start fifth, and he says that he can only reach the podium if the two in front of him drop out of the race. A fantastic run of results over the last five races has put Max Verstappen back in contention for the title, but it looks like that run could come to an end in Mexico City. At least as far as can be judged by the results of the qualifications. Lando Norris in McLaren won the pole position, and Max Verstappen managed to place his Red Bull in the fifth starting position. The gap was half a second, and Verstappen explained that the car simply does not work in the conditions prevailing in the capital of Mexico.

Expert Betting Tips

Ferrari once again achieved very good results in qualifying at the Mexico City Grand Prix, and Hamilton is offered a good chance for his first podium with the red car. Two years ago, Ferrari occupied the first starting row in Mexico, with Charles Leclerc in the first position, while last year, Carlos Sainz won the pole position and turned it into a victory. In yesterday's qualifying at the Rodriguez brothers' track, the drivers of the Italian team failed to reach their third consecutive pole position on Mexican soil, but they won second and third place, which is their team's best result of the season and gives them a good chance for a double podium finish in Sunday's race. It would be especially significant for Lewis Hamilton, who is still waiting for his first trophy won in the red racing suit. We believe that Hamilton has everything that is needed for a top 3 finish in Mexico.

OUR PREDICTION: Lewis Hamilton in top 3