low-grip surfaces are Piastri\u2019s Achilles heel<\/a>. He made the parallel between this and Piastri generally being stronger on fresh tyres but Norris taking the ascendancy at the end of a stint, when the rubber yields less grip.<\/p>\nHe pointed out that the rend was clear at the last low-grip track the sport visited, in Montreal, which was just second time Piastri had finished off the podium up to that point.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a situation Piastri said he became alive to in Mexico.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019ve just had to drive very differently the last couple of weekends, or I\u2019ve not driven differently when I should have,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s been a little bit kind of strange to get my head around, because I\u2019ve been driving exactly the same as I have all year, it\u2019s just that these last couple of weekends the car or the tyres or something have required quite a different way of driving, and I\u2019ve just not really gone to that.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe car\u2019s obviously not changed for a while now, so it\u2019s nothing to do with the car.<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven how the pace has differentiated the last couple of races, clearly Lando\u2019s found it a bit easier to just dial into that and I haven\u2019t.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve tried a few things with trying to change things up a bit today. Once we analyse if it\u2019s effective or not, that\u2019ll hopefully help see some progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
The upcoming circuits should swing back towards Piastri\u2019s driving style. The next race in Brazil will offer more conventional grip, as will the season-ending Qatar and Abu Dhabi grands prix. Only Las Vegas presents as a low-grip surface, though the track layout there will likely be tough for McLaren generally, making it relatively less of a danger round relative to Norris.<\/p>\n
In that context Piastri maintained he had no concerns about his core form ahead of the decisive final weeks of competition.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s important to remember for the other 19 races the way I\u2019ve been driving has been working pretty well,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s more about adding some tools to the toolbox rather than reinventing myself.\u201d<\/p>\n
Russell continues to fume post race | 03:02<\/p>\n
VERSTAPPEN SALVAGES POINT AT WHAT COULD BE FINAL RED BULL WEAK CIRCUIT<\/p>\n
If you win titles on your bad days, Verstappen reducing his championship deficit despite Red Bull Racing suffering a generally uncompetitive weekend might be indicative of the Dutchman\u2019s potency in the title battle.<\/p>\n
Having decaled after qualifying fifth on Saturday that he\u2019d need cars to retire ahead of him to make up any places, he came just 0.725 seconds \u2014 and probably one VSC deployment \u2014 short of second place in a feisty and sometimes messy race to keep himself in contention.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs soon as we went to the soft, we just seemed a bit more competitive \u2014 not compared to Lando, but I think second fastest more or less,\u201d he said. \u201cAt least we did the perfect strategy \u2014 [start on] medium, try and go long, then optimise the final stint on softs while everyone was on the mediums struggling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perfection, as he said after dominating in Austin, is what he needs. In terms of execution at least, he and the team have remained flawless.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s now just 36 points off the title lead, still with his championship destiny barely in his own hands if he can return to the top step in Brazil.<\/p>\n
But having had seemingly unstoppable momentum pretty much since the mid-season break, Red Bull Racing being more than a step behind McLaren is worthy of consideration here.<\/p>\n
The high-altitude demands of Mexico City are peculiar to the calendar. The lack of aerodynamic grip produced in the thin air is one thing, but another is the strain it puts on cooling.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ve talked a lot this year about McLaren\u2019s better thermal management of the tyres, but less has been said of its management of car temperature overall.<\/p>\n
It was notable that McLaren made no significant bodywork changes this weekend to cool the car. Red Bull Racing, on the other hand, had to open myriad vents in the bodywork to keep the internals cool \u2014 so much so you could see the Honda badge on the power unit.<\/p>\n
Every additional cooling louvre opened has a detrimental effect on aerodynamic performance. Given downforce is already so scarce at this altitude, it\u2019s reasonable to conclude at least some of Red Bull Racing\u2019s struggles were down to this.<\/p>\n
No other track on the calendar is anywhere near as elevated as Mexico City. This is therefore unlikely to be a problem anywhere else this season.<\/p>\n
Escaping with third might therefore be no major drama for Verstappen\u2019s late charge into title contention.<\/p>\n
Marshalls cross track during Lawson lap | 00:23<\/p>\n
TSUNODA SOUNDS LIKE A DEAD MAN WALKING<\/p>\n
Verstappen\u2019s punchy third served only to reflect more poorly on teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who returned his third scoreless weekend from the last five races. He finished 11th, exactly where he qualified \u2014 it was his third consecutive failure to reach Q3 \u2014 thought that was one place down from where he started on the grid after gaining a place through penalties for others.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s hardly the sort of result the Japanese star needed on what could have been a decisive weekend for his Formula 1 future, Red Bull having originally earmarked Mexico as an internal deadline to make a call on its driver line-ups.<\/p>\n
While management suggested ahead of the weekend that that call will now be delayed, few in the paddock believe that Tsunoda has done enough to prevent Isack Hadjar from taking his place next season.<\/p>\n
Perhaps Tsunoda knows that now too, with cagey post-race media interviews striking an unusually defensive tone.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday was easy points. We just threw it away,\u201d he said. \u201cThis kind of situation, missing out on points that easily we could\u2019ve taken today \u2014 P8, P7, I don\u2019t know \u2014 [is] frustrating.\u201d<\/p>\n
He expanded to speaking to Sky Sports, where he said his frustration was about more than just a slow pit stop that cost him almost 10 seconds, alluding to a \u201csituation\u201d that he couldn\u2019t elaborate.<\/p>\n
Yuki calls out 12 second pit stop | 02:17<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were a couple of things that I flagged but I wasn\u2019t able to avoid,\u201d he said cryptically. \u201cI managed to save that situation, which I can\u2019t say here, but it\u2019s very frustrating.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be honest, it was pretty much out of my control.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Tsunoda was on the same strategy as Verstappen, featuring a long first stint, it was clear he was struggling more than the Dutchman on the uncompetitive medium tyre, losing five positions in the five laps before his pit stop.<\/p>\n
Most of those cars, though, were possible challengers to Verstappen\u2019s podium finish. One of them was title contender Piastri.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand the situation,\u201d he said. \u201cProbably in hindsight I was able to help Max a little bit as well to score more points for P3, but also I think we can also score points with both cars. It was possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know what to say. It was literally out of my control today. A shame.\u201d<\/p>\n
His demeanour throughout was downbeat, even as he attempted to defend himself by arguing he maximised the things he could control in the race and that his pace in the opening stint was generally competitive.<\/p>\n
But even he seemed unconvinced that that was enough to save his own skin.<\/p>\n
BEARMAN GETS CAREER-BEST RESULT \u2014 WITH A LITTLE HELP OF THE VSC<\/p>\n
They\u2019ll be partying long into the night in Chelmsford \u2014 about 70 kilometres northeast of London, for those wondering \u2014 after Oliver Bearman took home a career-best fourth in Mexico City.<\/p>\n
It was a pleasingly assured drive by the Briton as what\u2019s been an inconsistent season hits a reliable stride. He\u2019s scored three rounds in a row and five times from the last eight weekends.<\/p>\n
It puts him ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon, over whom he also holds a slender qualifying advantage. <\/p>\n
In other words, Bearman has ascended from chaotic rookie to contender for leadership of the Haas team in 20 weekends.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a great result made only sweeter for him and Haas for the calibre of drivers he had to race to get there.<\/p>\n
\u201cActually we had the pace,\u201d he said. \u201cI held off Max in the first stint, I held off the Mercs in the second and I held off the McLaren in the third one.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was under a lot of pressure, and I think spent more time looking in my rear-view mirrors than in front, but that\u2019s sometimes how it has to be.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously my goal in life is to fight there week in, week out,\u201d he said. \u201cI didn\u2019t expect to be racing a McLaren, a Red Bull, a Merc or even racing a Ferrari this year \u2014 I expected that in future years, but to do it already this year is a very special feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n
A podium was on the cards during the first stint, but a decision to make a second stop to avoid being caught and passed by the Mercedes drivers or Piastri left him fourth, even if the late virtual safety car was a little lucky break to lock it in.<\/p>\n
It was a contentious call from race control to deploy the VSC for a lap or so on the penultimate tour, just as Piastri brought Bearman into range \u2014 and just as Verstappen locked onto the back of Leclerc.<\/p>\n
Carlos Sainz was the cause, spinning out in the stadium section, but the Spaniard appeared to limp to safety behind a barrier in a bid to avoid interrupting the race.<\/p>\n
It infuriated some pundits that a thrilling conclusion had been robbed by overcautiousness, but the FIA explained later that a combination of Sainz\u2019s car appearing to be on fire and it still being partially on track required marshals to walk through the run-off area to recover the car.<\/p>\n
Having marshals on track always requires \u2014 or should always require; see the Liam Lawson incident earlier in the race as to why<\/a> \u2014 the VSC, so there was no avoiding the anticlimactic ending.<\/p>\nBut it was good news for Bearman, who\u2019s up to 14th in the standings, and Haas, who jumped Sauber for eighth on the teams table.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Oscar Piastri said before this pivotal weekend that you\u2019d always rather be in the title lead than not…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":243415,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[572],"tags":[944,2095,13273,145073,1724,64,14017,63,689,141204,145070,11308,145057,2065,145080,145063,145065,4971,2791,22786,81136,2774,70679,145069,145062,145053,145064,145081,145058,79894,145083,145055,21773,117785,107486,22304,2057,25621,3875,14211,5328,16200,145078,59966,145060,1737,145077,2022,145072,145074,16201,825,647,2184,13756,938,806,805,803,804,145054,2041,2067,3583,677,5242,145068,145071,145056,36245,81550,137995,145082,145061,16260,2111,701,106488,145067,25598,43352,2643,145076,11298,145079,85,142977,36772,145075,3370,119395,31298,18508,21784,120819,145066,3586,2614,660,12000,2086,145059,5077],"class_list":["post-243414","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-motosport","tag-abu-dhabi","tag-america","tag-andrea-stella","tag-anticlimactic-ending","tag-asia","tag-au","tag-austin","tag-australia","tag-australia-and-new-zealand","tag-autodromo-hermanos-rodriguez","tag-bit-kind","tag-brazil","tag-cagey-post-race-media","tag-canada","tag-car-appearing","tag-car-temperature","tag-career-best-result","tag-carlos-sainz","tag-central-america","tag-championship-deficit","tag-championship-destiny","tag-championship-hopes","tag-championship-picture","tag-chelmsford","tag-conventional-grip","tag-cooling-louvre","tag-crazy-scenes","tag-cross-track","tag-danger-round-relative","tag-dead-man-walking","tag-decisive-final-weeks","tag-defensive-tone","tag-dominant-victory","tag-driver-dilemma","tag-driver-line-ups","tag-esteban-ocon","tag-europe","tag-final-stint","tag-george-russell","tag-grands-prix","tag-haas","tag-honda-motor-company","tag-inconsistent-season","tag-japanese-star","tag-kilometres-northeast","tag-lando-norris","tag-lead-loss","tag-london","tag-low-grip-surfaces","tag-low-grip-track","tag-ltd","tag-max-verstappen","tag-melbourne","tag-mexico","tag-mid-season-break","tag-montreal","tag-motor","tag-motor-sports","tag-motosport","tag-motosports","tag-myriad-vents","tag-north-america","tag-northern-america","tag-northern-europe","tag-oceania","tag-oliver-bearman","tag-opening-stint","tag-painful-interview-lays","tag-penultimate-tour","tag-pit-stop","tag-podium-finishes","tag-points-gap","tag-points-slump","tag-post-race-media-interviews","tag-qatar","tag-quebec","tag-queensland","tag-race-conditions","tag-rear-view-mirrors","tag-safety-car","tag-single-lap-speed","tag-sky-sports","tag-slender-qualifying-advantage","tag-south-america","tag-special-feeling","tag-sports","tag-stadium-section","tag-team-radio","tag-teams-table","tag-texas","tag-thermal-management","tag-title-battle","tag-title-contention","tag-title-lead","tag-track-layout","tag-uncompetitive-medium-tyre","tag-united-kingdom","tag-united-states-of-america","tag-victoria","tag-western-asia","tag-world-championship","tag-world-title-race","tag-yuki-tsunoda"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243414","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243414"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243414\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243415"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243414"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243414"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243414"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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