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The 2023 F1 Mexican GP comes at a crucial juncture for Max Verstappen and the fans. The Dutch driver comes to Mexico after battling hard and winning the race in Austin. Having said that, there were some unsavory boos that accompanied him to the podium, not that the Red Bull driver has paid too much attention to all of that in the past.
Coming to Mexico, the home race for Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez, there seems to be some tension in the air as the champion has been provided bodyguards to ward off what have been threats issued against him by some fans online.
Regardless, the 2023 F1 Mexican GP will be the first opportunity for Verstappen to better his own record of 15 wins in a season. He has already won 15 races this season and if he wins this weekend, he would have bettered the record he broke last season.
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So what can we expect from the 2023 F1 Mexican GP? Let's take a look.
2023 F1 Mexican GP: Preview
Key Storylines
#1 The pecking order
If we go by Albert Fabregas and his pre-race simulation then it appears that we're looking at an intense battle for the win in the 2023 F1 Mexican GP.
Well, we'll take his pre-race simulation with a grain of salt but there are still a lot of things that should be taken into consideration for this race. The high altitude is a concern and so is the brakes overheating due to which cars can't follow each other for long.
One would expect the gap to shrink but it remains to be seen where the teams find themselves in the pecking order this season.
#2 The battle for P2 in the championship
We're not talking about the battle between Sergio Perez and Lewis Hamilton here but we're talking about the battle between Ferrari and Mercedes. The German unit did a brilliant job to get the car as competitive as it was Austin but Hamilton's DSQ put paid to those gains.
There's a 22-point gap between Mercedes and Ferrari right now and while the Italian team might take new power units for the 2023 F1 Mexican GP, this is one battle that could get interesting.
#3 Max Verstappen's record-breaking run
Max Verstappen is heading to the 2023 F1 Mexican GP on the verge of breaking another record. While it has almost become a norm to expect Verstappen to break a record every race weekend this one is special. If the Dutchman wins, he betters his record for the most wins in a season to 16.
The gravity of this record can only be understood by the fact that in the 2003 F1 season, there used to be only 16 races. With his relentless nature, the records that Verstappen is breaking right now will take a lot of effort to beat.
Form guide
In form
Mercedes is the team that should be put in this bracket because it looked brilliant in Austin. There is even an argument to be made that Lewis Hamilton would have been the first to take the chequered flag if he had a better strategy.
Coming to the 2023 F1 Mexican GP, this race was one of the best opportunities for the team to win a race last season. There might be another one in play this weekend as well.
Out of form
Esteban Ocon can't catch a break by the looks of it. The driver has had three DNFs in the last five races and none of them have been his fault. He retired in Italy and Singapore due to reliability issues while he ended up retiring from Austin due to contact with Oscar Piastri.
The French driver has seen himself get outscored by his teammate Pierre Gasly this season and a lot of it could be attributed to these DNFs. The driver will be looking to salvage some points at the 2023 F1 Mexican GP.
2023 F1 Mexican GP: Predictions
Who will win the race?
This one is going to be very close and while there is all the temptation in the world to pick Lewis Hamilton as the driver that wins the 2023 F1 Mexican GP, we're going with Max Verstappen primarily because of the all-round nature of the talent as well as team support that gives him the edge.
The surprise of the weekend (Team)
Oscar Piastri had a bit of a dud at Austin. The driver was at a new track and just could not adjust to it in a manner that Lando Norris was able to and the result was a deficit between the two.
The 2023 F1 Mexican GP is going to be held in a somewhat similar situation, Piastri hasn't raced here before so once again it will be interesting to see how he copes with this one. We are however backing him to do well and be a podium contender.
The surprise of the weekend (Driver)
Aston Martin might have found something with its upgrade in Austin. At least that's what they want everyone to believe.
The team was on its way to scoring a double-point finish before a rear suspension failure for Fernando Alonso. This might be a bit of wishful thinking but keep an eye on the team at the 2023 F1 Mexican GP.
Disappointment of the weekend (Team)
The 2023 F1 Mexican GP will be Sergio Perez's home race and if we go by what Nigel Mansell used to say, 'The home crowd is worth half a second' lap time. Well, that wasn't the case last season as Sergio could not even secure a podium.
The driver hasn't had a great record in Mexico and with the momentum squarely against him, it's going to be hard to back him for a strong result this weekend.
Disappointment of the weekend (Driver)
Ferrari in all likelihood is going to start the race from the back of the grid. If the reports are to be believed, the team is going to install new power units in both cars and hence the duo will have to incur penalties.
The high altitude did not suit Ferrari a lot the last time it raced here and it might be the same this weekend as well.
