© Getty Images2024 Mexico City DebriefA fast car but no fiesta in Mexico
It’sonly1200kilometresfromAustintoMexicoCity,butthecontrastcouldnotbemoremarked,fromthevastexpanseofscrublandsurroundingtheCircuitoftheAmericastothecentreofMexicoCity,themostdenselypopulatedcityinNorthAmerica.
Last week in Austin, we had drivers dressing up as cowboys, team members kitted out in denim jeans, while TV presenters rocked the western vibe. Here in Mexico City, the “Dressing Up Box” was out again in the paddock, with the Mariachi band look a favourite, as were masks capturing the spirit of the Day of the Dead, a holiday celebrated in Mexico on 1st November. The most popular fancy dress attire was the “lucha libre” Mexican wrestler mask, but right from the start of free practice on Friday, it was clear that there was no need for Yuki and Liam to wrestle their cars around the track, as they were handling beautifully, showing a good turn of speed.
Yuki was third fastest in the two Friday sessions and he and Liam were both in the top ten in the final hour of practice on Saturday morning. The updates introduced on the VCARB-01 in Austin clearly worked well, while Yuki had an additional minor update to the floor, something Liam will also get this coming weekend in Brazil.
Game Plan Sorted© Getty Images
It meant that hopes were high going into Qualifying. Sure enough, Q3 looked on the cards, but then Yuki locked up the front end when braking in the stadium section at the end of his Q2 flying lap and crashed heavily into the barriers. That brought out the red flags, which meant Liam wasn’t able to complete his lap and our duo had to settle for the sixth row of the grid.
It's hard to hear yourself think on the grid at the Hermanos Rodriguez circuit, surrounded by the noisiest crowd of the year, the atmosphere quite frankly a cross between exhilarating and terrifying, but starting 11th and 12th, our duo was thinking of points. We split the strategies, with Yuki joining the majority on the Medium tyre, while with Liam the plan was a repeat of the one that had brought him points in Austin, going for a long first stint, starting on the Hards and saving the softer, quicker tyre for the final push in what would be a one-stop race.
Early Finish For Yuki. Gutted© Getty Images
Within seconds of the start, Yuki’s race was over: he was on a charge on the outside line heading to turn 1, but he ended up the innocent victim of a chain reaction when Pierre Gasly moved left towards Alex Albon whose Williams jinked towards Yuki, sending him flying through the air before crashing heavily into the barrier in the run-off at the first corner. Thankfully, he wasn’t hurt. As for Liam, he was running as high as fourth at one point, with some hard but fair moves which proved this rookie is scared of no one, but after his pit stop he found himself stuck in traffic, unable to exploit the strong pace of the car and once he had tangled with Colapinto in the closing stages, having to pit for a new nose section, any slight chance of points evaporated into the literally thin air of Mexico City.
There are a couple of positives to take away from the weekend: after just two races, Liam is settling in well, driving intelligently with the right amount of aggression and our car development has clearly taken a step forward, which we will get another chance to exploit in just a few days in the final round of this American triple-header in Sao Paulo.
Red Bull Family Games© Getty Images