The 2023 Components 1 World Championship continues this weekend with spherical 20, the Mexican Grand Prix, going down at Mexico Metropolis’s Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

Purple Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen might have already claimed this season’s championship, however the Mexican Grand Prix at all times throws up loads of motion, and the race for second within the championship continues to be very a lot alive. The 2 main contenders are Purple Bull’s Sergio Perez and Mercedes-Benz AMG’s Lewis Hamilton.

A brand new report might also be set this weekend. Verstappen has already received 15 races this season, equaling the report quantity he received final 12 months, and there is a good likelihood he’ll rack up a number of wins within the the rest of the present season. He additionally set a brand new report earlier this season with 10 wins in a row.

The Mexican race, formally the Mexico Metropolis Grand Prix, runs on a 2.7-mile circuit that lies at an altitude of near 7,500 ft. Thinner air density makes the engines work more durable, and producing ample cooling and downforce are additionally extra of a problem. High speeds are among the many highest of the season because of the low air density, with vehicles usually exceeding 217 mph.

Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, house of the Components 1 Mexican Grand Prix

The present structure consists of an extended straight, a combined center sector, and a closing part that includes the well-known Peraltada, a lot modified at present from its previous as a parabolic nook harking back to the one at Monza. The structure can also be famous for having the longest distance from the beginning line to the braking level for the primary nook, at 2,660 ft.

There’s various temperature variation in the course of the day in Mexico, even within the house of some hours, which impacts grip ranges from the tires. Pirelli has nominated its C3 compound because the white laborious, the C4 because the yellow medium tire, and the C5 because the purple delicate, a softer mixture than final 12 months.

The climate might be problematic, with each heat situations and heavy rain attainable. Nonetheless, the present forecast requires advantageous situations all through the weekend.

Going into Saturday’s qualifying session and Sunday’s race, Verstappen leads the 2023 Drivers’ Championship with 466 factors. Perez is second with 240 factors, adopted in third by Hamilton with 201 factors. Within the Constructors’ Championship, Purple Bull has already received the title and at present sits on 706 factors. Mercedes is second with 344 factors and Ferrari is third with 322 factors. Final 12 months’s winner in Mexico was Verstappen driving for Purple Bull.