Verstappen dominates Mexican GP to claim record 14th win in 2022

Max Verstappen cruised to a record-breaking 14th win in 2022 at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Despite what appeared to be a strong challenge from Mercedes, Verstappen and Red Bull brushed the threat aside on their way to a record 14th win in 2022.

Mercedes’ gamble to start on medium tyres and one-stop on hard tyres did not pay off, as the RB18’s pace was too great for the Brackley-based outfit to match.

Victory at the Mexican Grand Prix bested Sebastian Vettel and Michael Schumacher’s tally of 13 wins in 2004 and 2013 respectively, leaving the two-time champion the benchmark in this number.

Polesitter Verstappen maintained his lead at the start as teammate and home hero Sergio Perez pushed into the podium positions to the delight of the home crowd.

The race soon settled down as drivers focused on tyre management, but with Red Bull and Mercedes on different strategies, the tension remained.

Hamilton continued to pressure Verstappen in the opening stint, maintaining a gap just outside of one second to avoid pushing his medium tyres too hard. However, Verstappen remained firm and maintained the gap to the seven-time world champion.

Red Bull would pit on lap 23 and 25, while the Silver Arrows would wait for five more laps to change onto the hard tyre, but soon had Perez breathing down his neck after the Mexican was caught in traffic.

While the Red Bull drivers settled in on medium tyres, Hamilton and Russell struggled for grip, complaining over radio while their engineers reassured them that the race would swing back in their favour at the end.

On lap 51, Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda would collide at turn six, firing the AlphaTauri into the air before retiring from the Grand Prix in the pitlane. However, this had no effect on the race, with the green flag running continuing as usual.

Despite this clash and an earlier penalty, Ricciardo would charge into the top seven, while a retirement from Fernando Alonso due to engine issues would bring out a Virtual Safety Car.

The stricken Alpine would be cleared quickly, and the race would resume without issue, allowing Verstappen to drive cleanly to the chequered flag to win in Mexico for a fourth time, saying after the race:

“Of course we were on a different strategy to the cars around us but, again, an incredible result. The pace of the car was really nice.

“It’s been an incredible year so far, we are definitely enjoying it and we’ll try to go for more.”

Formula 1 next finds itself in Brazil for the penultimate round of the season.

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