If Charles Leclerc had won as he wanted, Max Verstappen would have received a penalty after the Mexican Grand Prix. However, the Dutchman finished third, but could have finished second if the FIA had not decided to deploy a virtual safety car on the penultimate lap.
Tension in Formula 1 reached a boiling point at the Mexican Grand Prix at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, where Lando Norris took a dominant victory to take the world championship lead from his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. But behind the British leader, a thriller unfolded that made the fans’ hearts beat faster: a duel between Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, which was abruptly interrupted by a late virtual safety car (VSC). This FIA intervention not only saved Leclerc’s second place, but also avoided a potential penalty for Verstappen, who in a hypothetical scenario of a Leclerc victory would have been punished more severely for a previous infringement.
The race started chaotically. Norris, starting from pole position, effortlessly maintained the lead after the start, while a four-way battle at the head of the field led to contact and off-track moments. Leclerc, Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen and Piastri became entangled at Turn 1, with Leclerc and Verstappen forced to short the chicane to avoid a collision. The stewards opened an investigation, but ultimately opted for ‘no further action’, a decision that would play a crucial role later in the race. “It was a wild start,” Norris said with a laugh in his interview afterwards. “I heard the radios crackling, but for me it was just hit the gas and go.”
While Norris extended his lead to more than 30 seconds, Leclerc fought his way to the front. The Monegasque, who struggled with a slow start, took advantage of his track position in the opening stages. He built a comfortable lead in the middle stages, but his tires began to suffer from the high temperatures and abrasive track in Mexico City. In the meantime, Verstappen recovered well. The four-time world champion, who started from fifth place, rose through an aggressive strategy: a late switch to soft tires that gave him speed in the closing stages. “The car felt better after the pit stop,” Verstappen explained. “I could see Leclerc overtaking, it was a matter of patience.”
With a handful of laps to go, Verstappen was closing in at lightning speed. The gap shrank from more than 20 seconds to less than two seconds. Leclerc, whose Ferrari began to slide on worn rubber, admitted he was teetering on the edge. “I fought as hard as I could,” he said post-race. “Max was faster, and without that VSC he probably would have passed me on the start-finish line.” Fans in the stands held their breath; it looked like Verstappen was on his way to a podium improvement that would boost his championship ambitions. He was 36 points behind Norris and could use every extra position in a season that can still go either way.
But then disaster struck – or salvation, depending on who you ask. On the penultimate lap, lap 70 of 71, Carlos Sainz spun in his teammate’s Ferrari and was stranded at Turn 14 in the stadium area. The Spaniard had already had a difficult race, including a pit lane penalty for speeding, and his retirement led to double yellow flags. The FIA promptly activated a virtual safety car, forcing all drivers to reduce their speed. This completely neutralized the race: no more overtaking opportunities, no DRS, no drama on the track. The VSC lasted longer than expected, until the last lap, and Leclerc was able to hold his position with just 0.7 seconds ahead of Verstappen.
The timing of this intervention led to fierce discussions. The FIA later explained that the VSC was necessary because marshals had to enter the track to safely remove Sainz’s car, and a previous marshal incident involving Liam Lawson had already put pressure on safety. “Safety comes first,” the association said in a statement. Still, there were voices of frustration among fans and analysts. Without the VSC, Verstappen could have made a final attack, and this may have led to an exciting battle for second place. But there was more to this decision. Suppose Leclerc had not won – or rather, if he had dominated the race as he initially seemed to do – then the earlier chicane incident would have had a different outcome. In that scenario, with Leclerc on the top step, the FIA would have judged Verstappen’s off-track action more severely, resulting in a time penalty or loss of position. “You win some, you lose some,” Verstappen himself put into perspective. “I’m not angry; it’s racing.”
Leclerc was more candid about his luck. “I was super happy with that safety car,” he joked. “Otherwise Max would have overtaken me, and I wouldn’t have liked that.” His second place, combined with the fastest race lap, earned him valuable points for Ferrari, who are now closing in on McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship. Verstappen, disappointed but professional, finished third and scored his sixth podium in a row. “Third is OK, but second would have been nicer,” he admitted. The Dutchman not only lost three points, but also saw Piastri miss out on a possible fourth place at the hands of the VSC, which limited Norris’ championship lead to one point.
This Mexican Grand Prix highlights the unpredictability of Formula 1 in 2024. Norris’ victory – his third of the season – catapults him to the top of the rankings, but with six races to go, including the double header in Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi, the battle remains open. Verstappen, the underdog in his own title race, showed resilience to rise from a mediocre start, but he will need to be sharper to keep up with Norris and Piastri. For Leclerc, the race offers a morale boost: after a disappointing qualifying, he kept the Red Bull wolf from the door.
The controversy surrounding the VSC will continue to resonate. Was it a fair decision, or a missed opportunity for pure racing? The FIA’s focus on safety is commendable, but in a sport where milliseconds count, fans sometimes feel robbed of the spectacle. Mexico 2024 will be remembered as the race where a virtual safety car created heroes and spared villains – paving the way for an even more exciting season finale. With Verstappen growling and Norris beaming, the rest of the year promises fireworks.
