The F1 calendar 2021 has entered the global tour leg of the season with the Americas at the forefront of the drama: the Mexico City Grand Prix is up next on the agenda.
Max Verstappen stormed to victory in Austin, Texas during the United States Grand Prix and he will determined to rip open a gulf between himself and Lewis Hamilton in the hotly-contested title battle.
The Red Bull stars sits atop the standings with a 12-point gap, and a victory in Mexico would shunt him 20 points ahead of Hamilton at the least.
However, should the Mercedes superstar pick up a win here, the championship battle will soar to new dramatic heights with just four races left after this one.
Red Bull driver Sergio Perez will be given a hero’s reception at his homeland track and back-to-back podium finishes in his last two outings will give him great confidence of recording a big display here.
RadioTimes.com brings you the complete guide to the Mexico City Grand Prix 2021 including start time, dates and TV details, as well as exclusive analysis from Sky Sports F1 commentator Crofty ahead of every race.
When is the Mexico City Grand Prix?
The Mexico City Grand Prix takes place on Sunday 7th November 2021.
Check out our full F1 2021 calendar for the list of dates and upcoming races.
Mexico City Grand Prix start time
The race begins at 7pm on Sunday 7th November 2021.
We’ve included the full schedule for the rest of the weekend, including practice and qualifying times below.
Mexico City Grand Prix schedule
Friday 5th November
From 5pm on Sky Sports F1
Practice 1 – 5:30pm
Practice 2 – 9pm
Saturday 6th November
From 4:45pm on Sky Sports F1
Practice 3 – 5pm
Qualifying – 8pm
Sunday 7th November
From 5:30pm on Sky Sports F1
Race – 7pm
How to watch Mexico City Grand Prix on TV
The Mexico City Grand Prix will air live on Sky Sports F1.
All races will be shown live on Sky Sports F1 and Main Event throughout the season.
Sky customers can add individual channels for just £18 per month or add the complete sports package to their deal for just £25 per month.
Live stream Mexico City Grand Prix online
Existing Sky Sports customers can live stream the race via the Sky Go app on a variety of devices.
You can watch the Grand Prix with a NOW Day Membership for £9.99 or a Monthly Membership for £33.99, all without signing up to a contract.
NOW can be streamed through a computer or apps found on most smart TVs, phones and consoles. NOW is also available via BT Sport.
Mexico City Grand Prix preview
With Sky Sports F1 commentator David Croft
How important is this weekend for Mercedes?
DC: This is a weekend where Mercedes have to – and I’d put that in capital letters – have to do to Red Bull what Red Bull did to them in Austin. That was a very significant win for Max last time out. Mercedes have to find a way to beat Red Bull this weekend with five races to go in six weeks with 12 points difference.
You don’t want that number to be building up because then you’re hoping for a DNF [from your rival]. And you’re not always going to get a DNF. Mercedes won’t say they have to beat Red Bull here, but I think they need to this weekend.
Sergio Perez, homecoming hero – how will he fare?
DC: He’s the man that the vast majority of this crowd want to see do well, which poses Red Bull a problem. If he is doing well, and he is leading Max and they want to swap it around and use team orders, do you make that call? Sergio has said he’ll do what he can for the team, he’s not in the hunt for the title, but it wouldn’t go down hugely well.
I just think it’s nice to see a settled Perez. He knows his qualifying has not been on the par that he wants it to be but his racecraft has not diminished. And he’s providing that support to Max. Wouldn’t it be great for the sport to see Sergio win in Mexico? Wouldn’t it just be a wonderful human outpouring of emotion to see that happen? Those things stick with you for a long while. I would love to see him win this race.
Tell us about the track
DC: It’s a long run down to Turn 1, which gives you plenty of time to settle things down, then plenty of carnage. Then going into into Turn 3, 4 and 5 as well, there are overtaking possibilities here. It was an easy one-stop race on these same type compounds as we’ve had before. I like the track; it’s fast. You get higher speeds here than you do in Monza! Valtteri Bottas, 231 miles an hour, the fastest official speed trap in qualifying here a few years ago when he was driving for Williams.
You run Monaco levels of downforce to achieve a very slippery car through the air, the air is very thin here, 2.2km up in the clouds. The result of which puts quite a strain on the internal combustion engines, but that’s negated by the fact the turbos work an awful lot better. That’s one of the keys to Red Bull’s success here over the years, their turbo has worked very efficiently.
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