Follow us on Google Discover Lando Norris claimed a dominant win at the Mexican Grand Prix, but he was not very popular amongst the home crowd.
Pato O’Ward warned that Norris and Piastri’s rivalry was about to get ‘entertaining’ in the final five races. It certainly has, as the former has taken the lead of the drivers’ championship by just one point.
Norris has not led the standings since Saudi Arabia, but his victory at the Mexico City Grand Prix has given him the momentum. The McLaren driver took pole position and commanded the race, while Oscar Piastri finished in fifth.
Position Drivers’ Championship PointsPts 1 357 2 356 3 321 4 258 5 210 6 146 7 97 8 73 9 41 10 39
But the Brit was not supported well in Mexico, as fans were heard booing him throughout the weekend. Norris vowed to ignore the boos and focus on winning the title.
Fans were heard chanting Sergio Perez’s nickname ‘Checo’ shortly after booing Norris. It was unclear why the McLaren star was so badly received in Mexico, but his past comments about the home hero may explain why.
Credit: Mark Thompson/Marco Canoniero/LightRocket via Getty Images
Mexican F1 fans will have to wait until 2026 to see their hero back on the track. Perez will race with Cadillac next season after being dropped by Red Bull in 2024.
The 35-year-old had a torrid season, scoring just four podiums and failing to finish in the top five after Miami, while Max Verstappen won the championship with nine wins.
Scoring only 152 points, Perez’s poor results ultimately cost Red Bull the constructors’ title as they finished third behind McLaren and Ferrari. Leading up to the Qatar GP, Norris was critical of the Mexican’s performances.
“There are certainly areas where Max (Verstappen) is truly phenomenal,” he said via Grand Prix News. “That being said, he obviously didn’t have a teammate who could challenge him in any way. That obviously makes his life a lot easier.
CategorySergio PerezMax Verstappen2024 points152437Grand Prix results123Grand Prix qualifying123Grand Prix wins09Grand Prix poles08Grand Prix podiums414Best finish2nd1stRetirements41Retirements (classified finish)10Fastest laps13Grand Prix points finishes1623Sprint results06Sprint Qualifying06Sprint wins04Sprint poles04Sprint podiums24The 2024 F1 teammate head-to-head battle of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen
“Verstappen therefore experiences no pressure. He doesn’t have to engage in a battle within his own team, he doesn’t have to beat anyone.
“That naturally provides some comfort. Of course, there are pros and cons to both situations, and he (Verstappen) did manage to pull it off. But at the same time, he was missing someone who could push him and someone who could try different things with the car.
“I’m sure Max Verstappen would say that he doesn’t care who his teammate is. As I said, there are pros and cons to both situations.
“However, I do hope for him that at some point a teammate will come along who can challenge him more. Besides, Red Bull probably would have won the constructors’ championship if they had two drivers as good as Max,” he said while winking.
These comments may explain why the Mexican crowd was so against Norris. They may not have taken his criticisms too kindly, especially ahead of his return to the grid in 2026.
READ MORE: Cadillac driver Sergio Perez’s life outside F1 from net worth to nickname
Photo by CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty ImagesLando Norris was also critical of Sergio Perez’s racecraft
Last year was not the only time Norris was critical of Perez. The pair came to blows at the 2023 Abu Dhabi GP, with both cars coming out of it unscathed.
Nevertheless, the McLaren star was not happy as he brutally criticised Perez’s driving. He told Viaplay, via quotes from RacingNews365: “I was expecting it to be honest. It was nothing new. He crashes into a lot people so not something new for anyone to know.
“But I did give him a lot of space. And so it didn’t change my race in the end of the day. So it was a tough day. We just didn’t have the pace we wanted.
“We struggled a little bit just, one-tenth a lap. One and a half tenths lap was all I needed to maybe catch the cars ahead, but we didn’t have it. I’m still happy we as a team beat Aston Martin, that was our target and we achieved it.”