Mexico City Grand Prix 2026

John Surtees clinched the world championship in Mexico thanks to his team-mate, who let him through on the final lap. A year later, Richie Ginther secured Honda’s first Formula 1 victory at the same venue, while decades later Max Verstappen became the event’s most successful driver.

The Mexican Grand Prix first appeared on the Formula 1 World Championship calendar in 1963, although its history includes two lengthy absences. Since its return in 2015, the race has been held regularly at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City.

World titles decided at the season finale

The first Mexican Grand Prix to count towards the Formula 1 World Championship took place on 27 October 1963. Jim Clark won for Lotus ahead of Jack Brabham and Richie Ginther. It was the Scottish driver’s sixth victory of a season in which he claimed his first world title.

Formula 1 had already visited Mexico a year earlier for a non-championship race. However, the event was overshadowed by the tragic death of local driver Ricardo Rodríguez during practice.

Only the second championship edition, in 1964, produced a dramatic title decider. Graham Hill, John Surtees and Jim Clark all went into the final race of the season with hopes of winning the championship.

Clark led for much of the race, only for his engine to fail in the closing stages. The title was ultimately decided by Lorenzo Bandini’s decision to let team-mate John Surtees through on the final lap. Second place was enough for the Ferrari driver to secure the championship by a single point over Graham Hill. Dan Gurney won the race for Brabham.

Surtees thus became the first, and to this day only, competitor to win world titles on motorcycles and in Formula 1.

Another historic result followed in 1965. Richie Ginther won for Honda, securing the Japanese manufacturer’s first victory in the F1 World Championship. It was also the American driver’s only career win.

In the years that followed, Mexico also hosted the title deciders for Denny Hulme in 1967 and Graham Hill in 1968.

The first era of the Mexican Grand Prix ended in 1970 with victory for Ferrari’s Jacky Ickx. The race was marred by serious organisational problems caused by the huge number of spectators, some of whom got dangerously close to the track. The event subsequently disappeared from the calendar for 15 years.

Berger secures Benetton’s first victory in Mexico

Formula 1 returned to Mexico in 1986. Gerhard Berger won the revived event, springing a surprise on the favourites in his Benetton to claim his first career victory.

It was the British team’s first Formula 1 win. Berger made a different tyre strategy work to his advantage, beating McLaren’s Alain Prost to the chequered flag.

Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna took turns on the top step of the podium in the following years. Prost delivered a particularly impressive performance in 1990.

The French Ferrari driver started only 13th but worked his way through the field to win. His team-mate Nigel Mansell finished second after overtaking Gerhard Berger in the closing stages.

The 1992 edition produced another notable result. Nigel Mansell led Riccardo Patrese home for Williams, while Michael Schumacher finished third. It was the future seven-time world champion’s first Formula 1 podium.

The Mexican Grand Prix disappeared from the calendar again after that edition. The country would not host another world championship race until 2015.

Rosberg wins on Mexico’s return as Hamilton celebrates titles

The return of the Mexican Grand Prix in 2015 generated enormous interest among local fans. The race took place on 1 November, with Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg emerging victorious.

The German took pole position before winning ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton. Valtteri Bottas finished third for Williams.

A year later, the Mercedes drivers finished in the opposite order. Hamilton beat Rosberg, but the battle for third attracted the most attention.

Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel received penalties for controversial manoeuvres, changing the final classification. Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo was ultimately promoted to third.

Lewis Hamilton clinched the world title in Mexico in both 2017 and 2018. Ninth place was enough to secure the championship on the first occasion, while he finished fourth a year later.

Both races were won by Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who was beginning to build his successful record at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Hamilton returned to the top step in 2019. The British driver beat Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and team-mate Valtteri Bottas.

The race scheduled for 2020 did not take place because of the coronavirus pandemic. Formula 1 returned to Mexico the following season, with the event officially known as the Mexico City Grand Prix from that point onwards.

Verstappen breaks records as Pérez delights home fans

The 2021 Mexican Grand Prix brought another victory for Max Verstappen. The Dutch Red Bull driver passed both Mercedes drivers at the first corner and controlled the race from there.

Lewis Hamilton finished second, while Sergio Pérez took third. The Mexican became the first home driver to stand on the podium at his own Grand Prix.

Pérez repeated that achievement in 2022, again finishing third. Verstappen took victory ahead of Hamilton.

It was the Dutch driver’s 14th win of the season, breaking the previous record for victories in a single campaign held by Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.

The 2023 Mexican Grand Prix gave Verstappen his 16th victory of the season. The Dutchman extended his own record once again and, with five wins, became the most successful driver in the history of the Mexican Grand Prix.

Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc finished behind Verstappen. For the home fans, however, the race ended in disappointment. Sergio Pérez collided with Leclerc shortly after the start and was forced to retire with damage to his car.

Sainz ends Red Bull’s winning streak

After three years of Red Bull dominance, the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix produced a very different result.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz took pole position before confirming his excellent form in Sunday’s race. Although the Spaniard lost the lead to Max Verstappen at the start, he reclaimed first place on lap nine.

Verstappen, meanwhile, was battling McLaren’s Lando Norris. Their fight resulted in two penalties for the Dutch driver, who received a total of 20 seconds for his manoeuvres.

Sainz steadily built a lead at the front and went on to secure victory without any major problems.

Carlos Sainz won the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix, beating Lando Norris by 4.705 seconds. Charles Leclerc finished third to secure a double podium for Ferrari.

Verstappen had to settle for sixth after his penalties. Home driver Sergio Pérez finished down in 17th.

Sainz claimed his fourth Formula 1 career victory and his second of the season. It was also Ferrari’s first Grand Prix win in Mexico since 1990.

2025 Mexican Grand Prix: Norris wins by 30 seconds

The 2025 Mexican Grand Prix took place on 26 October as the 20th round of the season. McLaren’s Lando Norris dominated the weekend, with victory also taking him into the world championship lead.

Saturday’s qualifying had already demonstrated the British driver’s excellent form. Norris set the fastest time of 1:15.586 to claim pole position by 0.262 seconds over Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Lewis Hamilton finished third, while Max Verstappen qualified fifth. Norris’s team-mate and championship leader heading into the weekend, Oscar Piastri, could manage only eighth in qualifying, although he started the race seventh.

Norris takes control in the early stages

Sunday’s race began with a dramatic start as Norris, Leclerc, Hamilton and Verstappen fought for position.

Norris retained the lead and quickly began to pull clear. While his rivals battled over the podium places, the British driver was able to control the pace and head towards victory without any serious threat.

After a difficult opening phase, Max Verstappen worked his way up to third and began closing on Charles Leclerc in the closing stages.

Their battle was interrupted, however, by a virtual safety car following Carlos Sainz’s retirement. Leclerc was therefore able to hold on to second, although Verstappen finished just 0.725 seconds behind him.

Lando Norris won the 2025 Mexican Grand Prix, beating Charles Leclerc by 30.324 seconds at the finish. Max Verstappen took third, 31.049 seconds behind.

It was Norris’s sixth victory of the season and the 10th of his Formula 1 career.

McLaren also ended a long wait for another win in Mexico. The British team had last triumphed there in 1989 with Ayrton Senna.

Bearman surprises with fourth as Hamilton receives penalty

One of the race’s standout results was fourth place for Haas driver Oliver Bearman.

The young British driver worked his way into the leading group after starting ninth and even ran in the podium positions during the race. He resisted pressure from Oscar Piastri in the closing stages to secure his best career result to that point.

Piastri finished fifth, followed by the Mercedes pair of Andrea Kimi Antonelli and George Russell.

Lewis Hamilton had to settle for eighth. The Ferrari driver received a 10-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage during his battle with Verstappen.

Haas driver Esteban Ocon and Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto completed the points-paying top 10.

The championship lead changes hands

Norris’s victory had major implications for the world championship battle. The British driver scored 25 points to move ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri in the standings.

After the Mexican Grand Prix, Norris led Piastri by a single point. Verstappen remained third, 36 points behind the leader.

The result also confirmed that McLaren could fight for victories again after a run of weaker races. Norris delivered his most dominant performance of the closing part of the season in Mexico, returning to the top of the championship for the first time since April.

Five victories keep Verstappen top of the all-time standings

After the 2025 season, Max Verstappen remained the most successful driver at the Mexican Grand Prix. The Dutchman had won five times, in 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

He is followed by four drivers with two victories apiece. Jim Clark won in 1963 and 1967, Alain Prost in 1988 and 1990, Nigel Mansell in 1987 and 1992, and Lewis Hamilton in 2016 and 2019.

The best result for a home driver remains Sergio Pérez’s third place, which he achieved in both 2021 and 2022.

Alongside Verstappen and Hamilton, Nico Rosberg, Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris have also joined the list of winners in the modern era of the Mexican Grand Prix.