Lewis Hamilton won the Mexican Grand prix. His Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg was second.
Daniel Ricciardo took third place after his teammate Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) were penalised.
Lewis Hamilton
This weekend I’ve had really good pace. The car felt really strong from start to finish – night and day compared to last year. I had a good start. But it’s such a long way down to Turn One that everyone just got the tow on me. The right front brake disc had glazed on the formation lap and I couldn’t un-glaze it. I thought it might be okay . But when I hit the brakes it just locked up as the temperature came up and I went flying across the grass.
I was lucky to get across and rejoin on the other side of the track. I had a big flat spot. And I mean seriously big. I could barely see the end of each straight with the vibrations and I genuinely didn’t know if my suspension was going to last. I was really lucky not to catch it again and either destroy the tyre or have to come in for an early stop. Luckily, I got it under control and was cruising from quite early on.
It’s kinda crazy to think I now have 51 wins. It’s a shame these results are coming so late in the season – possibly too late. You can look back at say that maybe if Malaysia didn’t happen then I’d be in a different position right now. But that’s motor racing. All I can do is my best. History has shown that it’ s never too late. I hadn’t won here before so it’s a great feeling to do that in front of this incredible crowd. Now my sights are fully set on Brazil. I’ve never won there either. Ultimately, as long as I feel I did the best I could in these final races, I can be happy at the end of the season.
Nico Rosberg
The Mexican fans were really outstanding again. I got goose bumps already in the stadium before the race at the driver’s parade. But then, when the people were calling my name on the podium, that was the most emotional moment of the weekend. Thank you to everybody who made this event possible and to every Mexican fan who made their way today to the track today. Checo Perez and Esteban Gutiérrez can be really proud of their countrymen.
I had a tough race. At the start I had a good getaway and thought I would be able to take the lead from Lewis, when I saw he had a massive lock up and went straight through the grass. Then, suddenly, Verstappen hit me heavily after he had a lock up too and forced me off the track. Luckily my car wasn’t damaged and it didn’t cost me a position.
Lewis was that little bit quicker today, so I didn’t manage to achieve my goal and win here again. But being second is not too bad overall. Now I look forward to flying home after two long weeks and relaxing a bit with my family, ready to come back stronger in Brazil and go for the win there. I think the Interlagos track suits our car much better, so I’m looking forward to going there and seeing what we can do.
Daniel Ricciardo
Obviously I’m happy to get the points. I think that means third for me in the Drivers’ Championship so I’m quite proud of that this year. Sure it would have been nice to get up on the podium and enjoy it. But none the less that was the situation today.
It was a fun race. Even though I was quite frustrated after the race with the incident and all that, I still had a lot of fun with that battle. And being the hunter at the end is so much more fun than driving around by yourself. The race came alive and obviously it became a bit spicy but it was a cool day. Sure I want to race and having penalties after the race isn’t ideal, but I did feel today that it was called for. I committed to the move and he squeezed me.
Racing should be tough and I don’t expect being waved through but we talked about the moving under braking and that’s on paper now. The only thing I’m disappointed of is not to be in the stadium in that moment but the podium is still up so I’ll go and have a few photos with the guys.
PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION (LAP 71/71): VET promoted to third after VES pen #MexicoGP ?? #F1 pic.twitter.com/jkVRWOHm0k
— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 October 2016
Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo summoned to the stewards – Vettel alleged to have driven “dangerously or erratically” #F1 #MexicoGP
— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 October 2016
Confirmed: Vettel penalised 10s for “potentially dangerous” driving. New #MexicoGP order:
3 – Ricciardo
4 – Verstappen
5 – Vettel pic.twitter.com/oQuq409SI0— Formula 1 (@F1) 30 October 2016
