Mexico – “… and I realised that he was consumed by an inner fire that his family fed with fuel rather than water.” This powerful and emotive phrase was used by Enzo Ferrari to describe Ricardo Rodriguez de la Vega, a rising star of Mexican motorsport who died all too soon at the age of 20 in 1962. Both he and his brother Pedro, who died nine years later at the Norisring, drove for Ferrari.
And today, coming in on a direct flight from Austin, the Scuderia an the rest of the Formula 1 teams are back in the city with the circuit named in honour of the two brothers.
In this its third year of its third incarnation, the Mexican circuit still features some of the original layout, even if, instead of the Peraltada that cost Ricardo his life, today we have the stadium section, which is spectacular but very slow.
The track first staged an F1 race in ’63 and was back on the calendar from 1986 to ’92. Then again the circuit came back from 2015. Each time it was getting shorter in length, from the original 5 kilometres to the current 4.304 km. Its most striking feature is what happens to the air here because the Mexican metropolis sits at 2300 metres above sea level so that air density is around a quarter less (leaving aside the matter of pollution) than at sea level.
Today’s turbocharged engines deal with this deficiency thanks to the compressor, but the level of aerodynamic downforce required is very high, precisely because the air doesn’t “push down” on the cars as it would do at a lesser altitude. Here again, and even more so than at most tracks, the setting for the fans is spectacular and support for Ferrari is not restricted to the circuit itself, as the minibuses used to transport the Scuderia team members to the track are soon spotted and mobbed with affection.
? CLASSIC ONBOARD: Mexico
WATCH: Michele Alboreto’s bumpy opening lap >> https://t.co/C2j2VBxU6V#MexicoGP ?? pic.twitter.com/Y3f0yZP9w4
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 25, 2017
Force India’s Chief Race Engineer, Tom McCullough, looks ahead to the challenge of the Mexican Grand prix
“The characteristics of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez are dominated by the high altitude of the track, at 2250m above sea level. At 780mbar, the air density is very low, resulting in reduced downforce, drag and cooling capacity. It’s a standout challenge for the engine and brake system cooling, especially since it is a high brake energy track. Low-speed corners dominate the layout, so it is crucial to develop a set-up that gives you performance in those sections. At the same time, you need to make the most of the very long straight. It provides a very good opportunity for overtaking.”
#MEXICOGP ?? MOST WINS (CURRENT TEAMS)
3 McLaren, Williams
2 Ferrari, Mercedes (? Rosberg 2015)#F1FastFact #F1 pic.twitter.com/SXrSZ05ONo— Formula 1 (@F1) October 26, 2017
