F1 Mexico City Grand Prix 2023 LIVE! Race result, reaction and latest updates

F1 Mexico City Grand Prix 2023 LIVE! Race result, reaction and latest updates

Max Verstappen equalled Alain Prost's tally of 51 victories with an emphatic triumph at the Mexican Grand Prix - as Sergio Perez's home race came to a sorry end after just 14 seconds.

Verstappen's remarkable winning sequence, which now includes a record 16 in one season, continued in the breathless Mexico City air following two pulsating starts after Kevin Magnussen's high-speed crash resulted in a reg flag at the midway stage of Sunday's 71-lap race.

Verstappen mastered both getaways to draw alongside four-time world champion Prost, with only Lewis Hamilton (103 wins), Michael Schumacher (91) and Sebastian Vettel (53) ahead of the all-conquering Dutchman in F1 folklore.

Hamilton impressed to finish runner-up, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. Lando Norris drove from 17th to fifth, passing George Russell with four laps remaining on a strong afternoon for the Brit, in an event that Perez will want to forget.

Mexico City Grand Prix highlights

  • LIGHTS OUT! Perez crash after risky move

  • RED FLAG! Magnussen shunt halts race

  • OVERTAKE! Hamilton gets second place off Leclerc

  • CHEQUERED FLAG! Verstappen wins in Mexico

Thanks for joining us!

22:20 , Marc Mayo

Max Verstappen, a moment ago in a sombrero as his car is lifted onto the podium, holds the Mexico City Grand Prix trophy aloft!

Recap the action with our race report!

Charles Leclerc is BOOED by the home fans

22:15 , Marc Mayo

"A lot of booing, I had nowhere to go. Unfortunately I had nowhere to go. It's life, of course I'm disappointed to end Checo's race but I didn't do it on purpose.

"We tried hard at the restart, Lewis was really quick and they were just better today. It's life."

Lewis Hamilton greets the crowd

22:14 , Marc Mayo

"A big thank you to this incredible crowd, Mexico gives us these great races every year. Gracias!

"I feel fresh, it's a great result. Really proud of the team, a really difficult couple of weeks. This is really well done.

"I wasn't thinking [the tyres] would last, I did some real finesse."

Max Verstappen reacts to record 16th win of season

22:12 , Marc Mayo

"It's been incredible, unfortunately Checo retired but the crowd stayed and they've been amazing. Incredible.

"We are of course experiencing an incredible season, the pace of the car was very very good. We tried a different strategy but with the red flag couldn't show it."

Mexico City Grand Prix | Chequered flag!

22:09 , Marc Mayo

No penalty for Piastri or Tsunoda in their tangle, the Australian finishing eighth.

Still to be investigated whether Leclerc is penalised for his front-wing end-plate dangling dangerously after he made contact with Perez back on the first lap.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Chequered flag!

22:08 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton with a fastest lap and Leclerc on the podium, Sainz fourth and Norris fifth.

Ricciardo doesn't manage to grab sixth off Russell! Half a second between them at the flag.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Chequered flag!

22:06 , Marc Mayo

Max Verstappen wins yet again!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 71/71

22:06 , Marc Mayo

Final lap!

Verstappen has over 14 seconds on Hamilton with Ricciardo looking for a late run on Russell in sixth.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 69/71

22:03 , Marc Mayo

Stroll is out after that collision. Stewards will check it over post-race.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 68/71

22:02 , Marc Mayo

Norris throws it at the hairpin after a tricky chicane for Russell... and makes it stick!

Over in sector three, Stroll goes off via contact with Bottas for a brief yellow flag.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 67/71

22:00 , Marc Mayo

Ocon gets Hulkenberg as Norris begins to lose a bit of grip in his pursuit of Russell.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 65/71

21:58 , Marc Mayo

Russell is now on Norris' radar with just over a second between the Mercedes and McLaren, in a battle for fifth.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 63/71

21:55 , Marc Mayo

Ocon now all over the back of Hulkenberg, who is clinging onto the final points position in his 200th F1 race.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 60/71

21:52 , Marc Mayo

Wheel to wheel, Norris gets past Ricciardo for sixth place!

Superb drive from the McLaren driver, 17th on the grid remember...

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 59/71

21:49 , Marc Mayo

We're now seeing Leclerc begin to reel in Hamilton for second place.

Sainz also strolling clear of Russell as the Hard tyres begin to push past the declining Mediums.

In the pits, Sergio Perez is touring the Red Bull garage to thank them with a wave to the fans too.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 57/71

21:47 , Marc Mayo

Top ten as final 15 laps begin:

  1. Verstappen

  2. Hamilton (+11.4 seconds)

  3. Leclerc (+4.8)

  4. Sainz (+3.8)

  5. Russell (+3.3)

  6. Ricciardo (+2.2)

  7. Norris (+2.3)

  8. Piastri (+2)

  9. Albon (+7.8)

  10. Hulkenberg (+7.9)

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 56/71

21:46 , Marc Mayo

Norris gets the nod to overtake Piastri under McLaren orders and push ahead in seventh place. Ricciardo is in his crosshairs.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 54/71

21:43 , Marc Mayo

Stewards looking into whether Piastri and/or Tsunoda caused a collision in that tangle.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 52/71

21:41 , Marc Mayo

Once more we see Russell and Sainz tussle for fourth place going down the start-finish straight but the Ferrari has broken the one-second DRS at this moment.

What we do have is a DRS train all the way from Albon in ninth to Stroll in 14th.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 50/71

21:37 , Marc Mayo

Tsunoda spins off at Turn 1!

Last lap, the AlphaTauri nudged Piastri at the chicane in a big battle for seventh place.

This time around it's a heftier blow which knocks the Japanese driver back to 16th. He'll carry on, at least.

Tsunoda may have simply turned in too soon there.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 49/71

21:35 , Marc Mayo

Alonso is out!

Aston Martin retire the car from 17th place.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 48/71

21:33 , Marc Mayo

Russell is right on the back of Sainz and has DRS into Turn 1, but remains in fifth place for now.

Norris also in the points now as he gets Hulkenberg. Rollercoaster day for the McLaren.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 44/71

21:28 , Marc Mayo

Magnussen is being kept in the medical centre for observations, Haas have announced.

The Dane has been given the ok in the check-over, though.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 43/71

21:27 , Marc Mayo

"That's a long way on this tyre," Hamilton tells team radio. He's not wrong.

They might be relying on a VSC or something, another pit stop will end his podium hopes.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 41/71

21:25 , Marc Mayo

Right, can Hamilton catch Verstappen?

A 3.2-second gap between the pair of them now and Mercedes with the Medium tyres may have a bit more pace than normal on the Red Bull.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 40/71

21:23 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton clips the grass as he flies through the inside of Turn 1 to grab second place off Leclerc!

The crowd goes wild with that.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 38/71

21:21 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton is half a second behind Leclerc, with those faster Medium tyres really needing to provide him a short-term boost.

Norris struggled off the restart there, dropping to 14th!

DRS back open from here on in.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 36/71

21:18 , Marc Mayo

Big battle between Hamilton and Leclerc for second place into the first turn and the Ferrari holds on with a fair bit of left-right-left-right!

Verstappen cruises into the lead, Russell also restarting well into fifth place.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lights out!

21:17 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton has Medium tyres on for the restart, along with Piastri and Russell in sixth and seventh respectively.

Verstappen leads us off for our second standing start of the day, at the halfway point of the 71 scheduled laps!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Restart coming up

21:12 , Marc Mayo

Back to the track!

We'll have a formation lap of-sorts from the pit lane ahead of lining up on the grid.

Sergio Perez reacts to his early exit

21:11 , Marc Mayo

"I had a tremendous start, the gap was there.

"I went for it, I wasn't expecting Charles in the middle to brake as late, simply there was no room for three cars. It was a total racing incident."

 (REUTERS)
(REUTERS)

Mexico City Grand Prix | Restart coming up

21:09 , Marc Mayo

"A standing start with a Hard tyre is going to be a huge mess," predicts Leclerc on team radio.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Restart coming up

21:08 , Marc Mayo

Standing start for the resumption!

Reminder that teams are free to work on their cars, replacing tyres and front wings. Good news for Leclerc and his missing end-plate.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Red flag

21:04 , Marc Mayo

Restart in ten minutes! Confirmed for 9.13pm GMT.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Red flag

20:58 , Marc Mayo

Lots of marshalls are working on the tecpro barriers and sweeping away the debris.

No restart time yet.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Red flag

20:56 , Marc Mayo

Replays suggest something just broke in Magnussen's car as he crossed the chicane, losing him control and sending him into the barriers.

They will need to be repaired with a flaming Haas also to be cleared up.

RED FLAG!

20:52 , Marc Mayo

The race is halted to clear up the wreckage.

Magnussen is out of the car.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 34/71

20:51 , Marc Mayo

Magnussen's Haas looked to be struggling out the final corner and has now had a big shunt on its left side at Turn 9.

Verstappen darts in for a pit stop, he'll make it to the end on fresh Hards.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 33/71

20:50 , Marc Mayo

MAGNUSSEN HAS CRASHED OUT!

Safety car called for.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 32/71

20:49 , Marc Mayo

Now it's Leclerc's turn. Ferrari have rather belligerently stuck to 'Plan A' today and he is out before Hamilton.

A three-second lead for the Monegasque, who is set for a lonely race to the finish.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 31/71

20:47 , Marc Mayo

Ferrari are out in the pits!

Sainz is up for new tyres and a 2.3-second stop sends him out with the Hards. He's six behind Hamilton in the battle for third place.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 29/71

20:45 , Marc Mayo

Those on new Hards are absolutely flying.

Verstappen, obviously, is chief among them and he's past Sainz for second place.

Having already pitted, he's now just over eight seconds off race leader Leclerc.

Russell is also carving his way through the field, into seventh place after nabbing Albon.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 28/71

20:43 , Marc Mayo

"Why have we pitted?!" Russell demands to know after bolting on Hards then coming out in 10th. He's stuck in traffic now.

Mercedes were fearing Norris' surge up the field, they reply.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 26/71

20:39 , Marc Mayo

Right here we go, Mercedes bring Hamilton in for the undercut on Sainz.

A 2.5-second stop sets him up well to get the Ferrari for what is the last place on the podium.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 24/71

20:37 , Marc Mayo

Norris rises to 14th place with an easy move on Alonso on fresher tyres.

Verstappen likewise enjoying new rubber with a cruise past the McLaren of Piastri.

No other frontrunner into the pits just yet.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 23/71

20:34 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton is all over the back of Sainz now and Mercedes head out into the pit lane... he doesn't come in yet though.

Russell also stays out as he loses sixth place to Verstappen.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 21/71

20:33 , Marc Mayo

Verstappen pits!

Bit of a surprise to see him go in so early, he drops out in seventh place on Hard tyres.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 19/71

20:30 , Marc Mayo

Stewards will investigate Leclerc after the race for the damage he had on his car in the Perez tangle.

No flags were thrown for the Ferrari, who saw the end plate of his front wing jettisoned a few laps later anyway.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 17/71

20:28 , Marc Mayo

Verstappen lead on Leclerc is up to 4.2 seconds with nobody inside the top seven within DRS range of the next driver.

Gasly on Hulkenberg for eighth is the main battle out on track.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 13/71

20:21 , Marc Mayo

Operation Make Something Happen continues for Norris, who pits from the Softs and comes out in 18th.

Lots of clean air for him to now run into on the Hard tyres, to undercut the midfield.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 11/71

20:19 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton makes it stick! Into Turn 1 he grabs fourth place.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 10/71

20:18 , Marc Mayo

Top ten after ten laps:

  1. Verstappen

  2. Leclerc

  3. Sainz

  4. Ricciardo

  5. Hamilton

  6. Piastri

  7. Russell

  8. Hulkenberg

  9. Gasly

  10. Zhou

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 8/71

20:17 , Marc Mayo

Hamilton all over the back of Ricciardo at the start of the lap but the Aussie's AlphaTauri is holding up well in fourth place, ahead of the Mercedes which we know has issues with overheating.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 6/71

20:12 , Marc Mayo

GREEN FLAG!

Back underway quickly with no cars taking an early opportunity to pit.

Leclerc is 1.8 seconds off Verstappen in the lead, with Sainz, Ricciardo and Hamilton following.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 5/71

20:10 , Marc Mayo

Perez hasn't left his car yet as Red Bull mechanics desperately try to put it back together for a run in front of his home fans.

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR!

The debris off Leclerc's front wing needs to be retrieved.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 5/71

20:10 , Marc Mayo

Perez hasn't left his car yet as Red Bull mechanics desperately try to put it back together for a run in front of his home fans.

VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR!

The debris off Leclerc's front wing needs to be retrieved.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 3/71

20:08 , Marc Mayo

Disaster for Perez, he raced down the right following Verstappen through as they both left Sainz for dead.

Leclerc held with the Red Bull but got squeezed in the middle. Nothing he could do, as he headed across the grass with damage to his front wing.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 2/71

20:06 , Marc Mayo

Perez limps back to the pits... the Red Bull pit crew try their best but THAT IS IT! PEREZ IS OUT!

Verstappen has the lead, Leclerc second with damage.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lap 1/71

20:05 , Marc Mayo

Verstappen straight down the middle, he has Perez coming down the right side of Leclerc...

CONTACT WITH PEREZ! HOMETOWN HERO IS OUT!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Lights out!

20:04 , Marc Mayo

Right then, 71 laps in the beaming Mexican sunshine await us.

Leclerc lines up on pole position, Sainz for company and Verstappen nipping on their rear wings in third place.

And, of course, Ricciardo in the AlphaTauri in fourth.

Here we go... LIGHTS OUT!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Formation lap

20:02 , Marc Mayo

Couple of drivers further down the pack on Hard tyres too, ahead of this likely one-stop race.

Big atmosphere for this race as the fans greet the drivers!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Formation lap

20:01 , Marc Mayo

Time for our first glimpse of the starting tyres as the 19 cars on the grid head out for the formation lap.

The frontrunners are on Mediums, down to Alonso in 13th. Norris back in 17th on Softs!

Mexico City Grand Prix | Countdown to lights out

19:57 , Marc Mayo

The 19th race of the 2023 F1 season is just moments away!

What will Ferrari plan off the line?

19:53 , Marc Mayo

Remember, this race holds the longest run from the start line to Turn 1 on the entire 2023 calendar.

Will Ferrari team up to hold off Max Verstappen, fight among themselves… or simply be powerless to stop the Red Bull no matter what?

Charles Leclerc makes his way to the grid (REUTERS)
Charles Leclerc makes his way to the grid (REUTERS)

Reminder: Mexico City Grand Prix starting grid

19:50 , Marc Mayo

Charles Leclerc leads a Ferrari front row.

Time for the national anthem

19:48 , Marc Mayo

A children's choir sings us in on the grid, great effort.

More to come from the Red Bull

19:46 , Marc Mayo

Max Verstappen admitted his surprise after only grabbing third place on the grid.

He said: "It's always difficult to tell. I'm not part of their team, so I don't know what's going on.

“I personally just expected it to be a little bit better in evolution through qualifying from our side. And I think that's what we were lacking a little bit.

“The improvements were not big enough, coming into Q3. But this track is also extremely difficult in qualifying to hit the perfect lap. Because it's so low grip, if you tried to push a little bit more, you might overheat the tyres, or you have a little slide.”

Daniel Ricciardo tipped for Red Bull return

19:39 , Marc Mayo

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko tipped Daniel Ricciardo to reclaim his old seat after grabbing fourth on the grid.

There is speculation the Aussie could oust Sergio Perez as Max Verstappen’s teammate at the end of the season.

“Incredible,” Marko told Sky Deutschland. “He really got everything out of it.

“Great comeback after his hand injury and a good recommendation for the future.”

Let's talk tyre strategy

19:35 , Marc Mayo

One-stop strategy looks to be on the cards.

Lewis Hamilton assesses his weekend so far

19:29 , Marc Mayo

Sixth place for Lewis Hamilton in the Mexico City Grand Prix.

Overheating is a real issue for Mercedes at this altitude.

He admitted post-qualifying: “I had been struggling all weekend with this car. The car has been a bit of a nightmare to drive, and to be able to piece it all.

“It just doesn’t like this track.

“We made some good changes going into qualifying, was much happier with the car. I wish we had done it in the morning, but then Q1 and Q2 weren’t looking too bad.

“Q2 second lap was great but the car is just really peaky, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, and I just wasn’t able to extract much more from it in the end. In a perfect world, maybe I could have been fifth but that’s about it.”

Issue with Oscar Piastri's car

19:22 , Marc Mayo

A piece of paper lodged itself in the underside of his McLaren, which TV cameras inside the kerb of one of the turns has picked up.

He drops back into the pits for some last-minute tinkering.

Charles Leclerc topped the timesheet in qualifying

19:16 , Marc Mayo

Watch how the Ferrari man grabbed pole position.

Pit lane open

19:11 , Marc Mayo

The cars head to the grid!

Big atmosphere in Mexico!

19:05 , Marc Mayo

There aren't many crowds as vibrant as this one.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Countdown to lights out

18:59 , Marc Mayo

One hour to go!

Red Bull gossip addressed by Sergio Perez

18:52 , Marc Mayo

Sergio Perez fronted up to talk over his Red Bull future after finishing behind Daniel Ricciardo in qualifying.

“Well, Daniel did a tremendous lap,” he said. “And I don’t think it’s just Daniel that wants my seat.

“I think there are a lot of other drivers that want to be in that seat. And it’s great, if it’s what they deserve, then I’m happy for them.”

Lando Norris targets resurrection act

18:43 , Marc Mayo

Tough afternoon in store for Lando Norris.

After being dumped out of Q1 due to a mistake followed by a yellow flag, the McLaren man put the blame on himself.

He said: “I just made some mistakes on my one lap that I had. Obviously there was a yellow in the end from Fernando.

“So yeah, that one opportunity, that one lap that I was given, I didn't put it together. It went off and that was it. We turned around and went straight back out

“We will speak about it after, but I had one lap and I didn't do it. So it is on me.”

Who has the race pace?

18:36 , Marc Mayo

F1 journalist Albert Fabrega has crunched the numbers from practice and it looks like the quickest car in terms of race pace will be… Red Bull.

Mexico City Grand Prix | Countdown to lights out

18:29 , Marc Mayo

We’re 90 minutes away from the Mexico City Grand Prix!

Why Lance Stroll starts in the pit lane

18:24 , Marc Mayo

Set-up changes to Stroll's Aston Martin have broken parc ferme rules and that means a pit-lane start for the Canadian.

He was only looking at P18 anyhow...

When in Rome...

18:18 , Marc Mayo

Pierre Gasly is getting in the Mexican spirit!

The man of the moment

18:13 , Marc Mayo

Sergio Perez on the track parade, can he pull off a win for fifth on the grid?

 (Getty Images)
(Getty Images)

Weather forecast

18:09 , Marc Mayo

Dry and sunny in the Mexican capital today!

Temperatures should peak at a reasonable 25ºC with zero per cent chance of rain.

Mexico City Grand Prix race winner odds

18:01 , Marc Mayo

Max Verstappen - 2/9

Sergio Perez - 10/1

Charles Leclerc - 14/1

Lewis Hamilton - 16/1

Carlos Sainz - 25/1

Oscar Piastri - 33/1

Via OLBG

What happened in qualifying?

17:48 , Alex Young

Charles Leclerc swept to pole position on Saturday with Carlos Sainz qualifying second in a surprise Ferrari front-row lockout.

The Italian team had seemed slow in final practice, with Leclerc 13th and Sainz 15th but they pulled the time out of the hat when it mattered.

Triple world champion Max Verstappen starts today in third place for Red Bull, chasing a 51st career win and record 16th of the season, with Daniel Ricciardo a stunning fourth for AlphaTauri after returning from a broken hand.

Red Bull's Sergio Perez qualified fifth for his home race, with Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton sixth after being fastest in the second phase.

"I did not expect to be on pole position today because we were lacking quite a bit after FP3," said Leclerc, who has just five wins from 22 previous poles.

"For some reason once we put everything together it went well, the new tyres we gained a lot."

 (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
(POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Starting grid

17:42 , Alex Young

1) Charles Leclerc

2) Carlos Sainz

3) Max Verstappen

4) Daniel Ricciardo

5) Sergio Perez

6) Lewis Hamilton

7) Oscar Piastri

8) George Russell

9) Valtteri Bottas

10) Zhou Guanyu

11) Pierre Gasly

12) Nico Hulkenberg

13) Fernando Alonso

14) Alex Albon

15) Esteban Ocon

16) Kevin Magnussen

17) Lando Norris

18) Yuki Tsunoda

19) Logan Sargeant

Pit lane) Lance Stroll

Lance Stroll will tonight start in the pit lane after Aston Martin altered his car after a disappointing qualifying session.

How to watch Mexico City GP tonight

17:35 , Alex Young

TV channel: In the UK, the race will be shown live on Sky Sports F1 with coverage starting at 7pm GMT.

Live stream: Sky subscribers can watch online via the Sky Go app.

Welcome

17:30 , Alex Young

Welcome to the Standard's LIVE coverage of the Mexico City Grand Prix. It's a Ferrari front row at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez as the Prancing Horse look for their first win in this race for 33 years.

Sergio Perez will be dreaming of an upset from P5, while his Red Bull team-mate Max Verstappen is perfectly poised in third.

It's lights out at 8pm GMT. Stick with us.

[object Object] (AP)
[object Object] (AP)

A special race for Nico Hulkenberg

17:50 , Marc Mayo

The German racer takes on his 200th F1 grand prix today.