After the drama of the US Grand Prix last time out in Austin, all eyes will be on the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez as the F1 circus heads to the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.
The battle for the Drivers’ Championship took another turn in Texas, as Lando Norris was penalised for running off the track in a bid to overtake his title rival Max Verstappen.
McLaren's Norris was issued a five-second penalty which saw him drop down to fourth behind Red Bull's Verstappen, while the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr enjoyed a weekend to remember with a one-two for the Scuderia.
With Verstappen now 57 points clear of Norris in the Drivers’ Championship with five races to go and 146 points still up for grabs, the Mexican Grand Prix will provide the next chapter in this intriguing battle for the title.
Fueled by the disappointment of his penalty at the Circuit of the Americas last time out, Norris will be determined to get back to the top of the podium for the fourth time this season.
Already winning ways in Miami, the Netherlands and in Singapore, Norris has shown he’s capable of taking the chequered flag at various styles of tracks.
The high-altitude Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez always plays a role, with the circuit in Mexico City sitting at 2285 meters above sea level.
With the thinner air at this sort of altitude, downforce and efficient turbochargers are key to deal with the reduced levels of oxygen that has an impact on the cars.
Norris’ McLaren appeared to cope with the conditions at the Mexican Grand Prix last season, as he finished in fifth place.
However, the Brit has come on leaps and bounds since that last race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez and, now a title challenger, the 24-year-old should be in the mix for the chequered flag this time around.
Leclerc’s win in Austin has made him the early favourite for the win this weekend, but one has to go back to 2019 for the last time the Ferrari driver recorded back-to-back F1 wins.
The attention around Leclerc should play into the favour of Norris and certainly gives his race winners odds a boost to +250 which appeals here.
A special race for home favourite Sergio Perez, there is certainly value to be had backing the Red Bull racer to finish in the top six on Sunday.
The fanatical support of the home crowd tends to bring the best out of Perez, even if the Mexican star has not enjoyed his best season.
Perez started the campaign positively with four top-three finishes in the first five races of the season, but since his third place at the Chinese Grand Prix, he has been absent from the podium.
However, a seventh-place finish last week at the US Grand Prix suggests the +100 on offer here for a return to the top six on Sunday is worth considering.
Perez finished third at the Mexican Grand Prix in 2022, before being forced to retire from his home race last season.
While a podium finish might be a stretch for the man from Guadalajara, placing in the top six certainly looks achievable.
Williams racer Alex Albon endured a disappointing weekend in Austin last week with a 16th-place finish, but he can get back among the points at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on Sunday.
Albon has finished in the top 10 in two of his last four races, gaining points in both Italy and Azerbaijan in back-to-back races.
A retirement in Singapore and a tough weekend in Texas stalled his progress, but the 28-year-old can return to the points this weekend at a track where he finished ninth last season.
Charles Leclerc | +240 |
Lando Norris | +250 |
Max Verstappen | +275 |
Carlos Sainz | +700 |
Oscar Piastri | +900 |
George Russell | +1800 |
Lewis Hamilton | +2000 |
Sergio Perez | +4000 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.