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Video: Almost crash in first practice
Two Friday drivers meet in Mexico – or almost! Because Lando Norris (McLaren) can simply prevent in this scene, he shoots Nicholas Latifi (Force India) at the back. See yourself …
Ferrari: a great force only recognizable in the race?
Sebastian Vettel suggests after Friday's practice in Mexico City: Ferrari might not have a chance to win pole position, but could give much better results in the race. "The Longruns did not look so bad," Vettel said. "On the other hand, we struggle to find the right balance and get the most out of the tires, but the problem is that you do not have grip here, you slip, which makes it difficult, and if you you're not sure you're making a big difference after that. "
Formula One Technique: Updates in Mexico
The update of the rocker at Ferrari is back! And also do-it-yourselfers Red Bull at the same place. At Toro Rosso, there is a new front fender and other phases of expansion. And the other teams follow suit!
Take a look at our detailed photos of technical innovations in Mexico – or browse our technical photo gallery in the popular flip book mode!
Red Bull fears no engine penalty for Verstappen
Hydraulic damage would have forced Max Verstappen to participate in Friday's practice. But Christian Horner, director of the Red Bull team, does not expect Verstappen to be penalized by a penalty on the grid due to the possibility of spare parts. "If it's really a change of engine, it still has a drive available in its pool, so it should already fit," said Horner at "Sky."
Pictures of the day of Mexico
The most beautiful shots of the Hermanos Rodriguez autodrome in Mexico – made by our photographers LAT and Sutton. Now you can find the highlights of Friday in our photo gallery!
And if you prefer browse: In our photo gallery, the most beautiful scenes of Friday are also included – in the popular mode of the flip book!
When the engines are on for the first time …
1.2 seconds faster than the rest of the world: Red Bull has determined Friday's practice of Formula 1 in Mexico. If this trend will continue? The boss of the team, Christian Horner, is not convinced and says on "Sky", especially with Ferrari and Mercedes should qualify to come back. "Of course, they will turn on the engines and the question is how much they will achieve at this altitude," said Horner, adding: "Last year, we missed pole position by a tenth of second and we would like to do better this year.
Max Verstappen could even set a new Formula 1 record: if he won the pole position in Mexico City, he would be the youngest poleman of all time in the Grand Prix. "He has every reason to put everything on one card," says Horner.
Vettel: Topspeed is not everything …
Sebastian Vettel was measured with his Ferrari with a top speed of 350 km / h when he completed a quick lap in free practice in Mexico City. But then, said the German, the final high speed on the long straight is not essential. "It will probably not hurt if you accelerate one, two, three or four km / h, but it will be much more important to put the tires in the right window of work," Vettel said. "Because otherwise, you can easily lose two, three, four, five tenths of a second here, so a lot of time."
Backyard lucky perfume in the race "unpredictable"
Williams rider Sergei Sirotkin, whose team is not in last place in the overall rankings this year, sees a good chance of winning the Mexico Grand Prix when the race takes unexpected turns, for example because of the situation. tires. During Friday training, Pirelli tires were not very durable.
Sirotkin believes that some teams might be in trouble for a "good cause" as it would give them "a lot of different options," he said. "It may be that we are the big losers in the end, but on the other hand, we do not have much to lose, so it 's more positive for us.
Ferrari is sticking to that: no underbody update!
According to Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari will not use the new underbody, which the team has already tested several times in free practice, even in Mexico in the race. Obviously, Maranello does not believe that the new development really represents progress.
The design of the new underbody version impresses with numerous vertical fins on the base plate, designed to better direct the airflow around the rear wheels. Already at Suzuka, Ferrari had experienced it for the first time, also in Austin.
Our picture shows the new specification that has only been tested so far.
© Sutton
Tire situation: sometimes not Einstopprennen?
As Pirelli tires from Mexico are currently extremely fragile and in rapid decline, Formula 1 teams could break with the one-stop strategy this year, says Daniel Ricciardo. "There is a lot of graining going on, especially in the Hypersoft mix, but it's actually nice," said Red Bull driver. "Normally, one-on-one races are pretty easy, but maybe this weekend will be a two-start race."
Williams driver Lance Stroll said: "It will be difficult, especially for pilots who leave with Hypersoft tires and wish them good luck!" He thinks some teams have "unexpected racing strategies," says Stroll.
Duel Red Bull for pole position in Mexico?
If Friday's practice is an indicator of who sets the tone in qualifying, then Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen, as teammates of Red Bull, could compete for pole position in Mexico on Saturday.
Verstappen is in a good starting position after two fastest times in practice: "Today, it has gone very well, we have a good car, a lot of support and a good mechanical grip, as you have already seen in Monaco. "
Ricciardo, in turn, doubts that Red Bull can maintain its lead over the competition. "Ferrari and Mercedes will be involved on Saturday, I do not think we'll be in advance for half a second, the key to success is simply to make a clean ride, it is good to avoid mastering the car , "says Ricciardo. "There could be a six-way battle for pole position."
Vettel explains Ferrari's weakness during Friday's training
Sebastian Vettel finished fourth in Mexico's free practice today (+1.2 seconds) behind the two Red Bulls and surprisingly behind Carlos Sainz's Renault. The strength of Renault engines does not surprise him: "It's the track with the lowest power sensitivity," he says, "but you can expect Red Bull to be very strong."
He does not take it so seriously that he has landed behind Sainz: "I do not think we had a clean lap – we should have been ahead of the Renault."
The biggest problem he sees today is the tires. "Everyone is on the edge of the tires and trying to make them work, so that they slide less – except maybe the Red Bulls," Vettel said.
His Ferrari teammate Kimi Raikkonen was even only eighth.
Video: Verstappen goes out!
The moment when Red Bull Day, so remarkable, suddenly took a blatant turn …
See for yourself and hear what's wrong with Max Verstappen!
Verstappen fault: suspected hydraulic damage
Red Bull already has a theory for the sudden departure of Max Verstappen during the second training in Mexico: "We suspect hydraulic damage, but we do not know exactly," says Verstappen. The team's director, Christian Horner, expresses himself in the same way in "Sky". Exactly, we will only know if we examine the car in the box.
Basically, Red Bull is well placed: "The day was pretty good," said Verstappen. In fact: both training sessions were determined Friday by the former world champion team. Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel said: "We had already thought that they would be strong here." Verstappen is the winner of last year in Mexico …
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