2022 Formula 1 Mexico City Grand Prix
Round 20 | Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez | Mexico City
Hola amigos! We’re heading down south of the border to Mexico City for Round 20 of the season. And compared to the tension in the championship last year at the same time, this year should be a pretty pressureless affair - at least for 2022 Champions Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing.
Checo Perez will still be under pressure though. A lot of it self-inflicted as he tries to take advantage of the best possible time in his career to win his home GP. Whether Max will help or hinder him in that quest remains to be seen though. Verstappen is chasing a record breaking, stats rewriting season of his own and has the opportunity to cement his 2nd Championship season with an incredible 16 race wins. If Sergio wants to stand on the top step in Mexico City on Sunday, he’s going to have to earn that right.
The Schedule
Mexican time is slightly better for us that Texas time, but still, some late night racing action ahead for F1 fans.
The Circuit
When was the track built?
In 1959. The father of Mexico’s most famous racing brothers, Ricardo and Pedro Rodriguez, was an advisor to Mexican President Adolfo Lopez Mateo, and had a word in his boss’s ear about building a racing circuit in Mexico City’s Magdalena Mixiuhca sports park using the existing internal roads. El Presidente liked the idea, and work on the track was completed in under a year.
When was its first Grand Prix?
Formula 1 cars arrived in 1962 for a non-championship race, returning the following year for a proper, bona fide Grand Prix. That 1963 race was won by Jim Clark, while for the next few years, Mexico’s fiesta vibes meant it became the traditional season-ender for Formula 1. Mexico was welcomed back onto the F1 calendar in 2015.
What’s the circuit like?
High up! The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez sits over 2km above sea level, making the 4.3km lap a breathless experience. The track still largely follows the outline of the original 1959 circuit, the main difference being that the spectacular – and spectacularly scary – Peralta corner is now bisected, with the circuit instead winding through the old Foro Sol baseball stadium, providing one F1’s most unique vistas.
The Weather
All fine and fair on the weather front this weekend. Mexico City should be sparkling in the sunshine.
The News
As usual, all the news and official information comes to the F1 site a little slower than other places, but it gets there eventually.
The Free Digital Programme
Another quality digital programme available for us for the race this weekend.
¡Arriba, arriba! ¡Ándale, ándale! ¡Rápido, muy rápido Checo!
Checo FTW!!)
