2017 Mexico Grand Prix - Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, 27-29 October

[Dazed1]

Red Bull went pretty 'hard" on their tire selection. Maybe aim to start on SS or S?

[Shrieker]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

What ? This is getting ridiculous now... He did a very good weekend and seemed he learned lessons from his forced leave. Hartley hardly impressed imo...

[zibby43]

At last seasons race, it was thought by many that Ferrari would perform better than all others on this track, because the thinner air (due to the high altitudes) would suit their more efficient cooling package best. It turned out not to be so in the end.

Aside cooling, the high altitudes negatively affect fuel consumption, aero and power output, making this is a track that favours neither bird nor beast. The parameters for performance are quite varied here, so only a car with superior engineering to all others will come tops.

I wonder if aerodynamic efficiency is rewarded here?

Or is the approach to bolt on as much downforce as possible, Monaco-style?

[Moose]

At last seasons race, it was thought by many that Ferrari would perform better than all others on this track, because the thinner air (due to the high altitudes) would suit their more efficient cooling package best. It turned out not to be so in the end.

Aside cooling, the high altitudes negatively affect fuel consumption, aero and power output, making this is a track that favours neither bird nor beast. The parameters for performance are quite varied here, so only a car with superior engineering to all others will come tops.

I wonder if aerodynamic efficiency is rewarded here?

Or is the approach to bolt on as much downforce as possible, Monaco-style?

It's Monaco style - highest downforce configs on the car. Expect a strong race from Ferrari and Red Bull. Expect Hamilton to still come in 5th in the worst case though.

[zibby43]

It's Monaco style - highest downforce configs on the car. Expect a strong race from Ferrari and Red Bull. Expect Hamilton to still come in 5th in the worst case though.

Thanks. It should be interesting. Merc ran their "new" (i.e., the kit introduced in Malaysia) high-downforce package at both Japan and COTA. They didn't even use their "spoon" rear wing, opting for the higher-downforce option (with a slightly cut-down upper flap).

Hamilton looked like he had plenty of race pace in hand at COTA, which surprised me a bit, especially considering the handful of updates Ferrari brought.

I believe Ricciardo will face a grid penalty in Mexico City re: the power unit.

[PlatinumZealot]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

The guy is still under contract at RedBull for another two years! So he has to work for them even when he doesn't have a race seat! How awful!

[digitalrurouni]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

The guy is still under contract at RedBull for another two years! So he has to work for them even when he doesn't have a race seat! How awful!

I would still take his awful any day of the week.

[Restomaniac]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

The guy is still under contract at RedBull for another two years! So he has to work for them even when he doesn't have a race seat! How awful!

Yep RedBull have destroyed that kid.
Yes he isn't the best driver in the world by a long shot but at one point he was actually showing some skill.

He is better than Magnussen and Grosjean when Kyvat's head is right for a start. To be 'sacked' 3 times by the same group and to still be under contract is extreme. How the hell does he turn up for work now?

[Gerhardsa]

I also think he will beat 50% of the field easily in the same car, maybe even more.
Hell he did a stellar job at COTA in my opinion. Feel sorry for him although I am not the biggest fan, he does deserve better.

[Vasconia]

I think Verstappen will be the main challenger to Hamilton this weekend.

With those long straights Ferrari should beat RB. If not, I would be more than surprised.

Anyway, its incredible how much RB improves from qualy to race so whow knows.

The high altitude means long straights don't have as pronounced an effect as they might elsewhere. It's pretty much a max downforce circuit in spite of the straights.

Even so, the Red Bull has been good at high speed circuits with multiple straights - Monza and Belgium being good examples. They pushed Ferrari hard at both this year.

Last year Red Bull were all over Vettel, and comfortably ahead of Raikkonen in Mexico. This year their engine is more competitive, the chassis is probably better too.

I'd go for Hamilton, Verstappen, Vettel, Ricciardo, Bottas, Raikkonen.

I thought thinner air benefited the most powerful engines and make the weaker ones to suffer more. But I may be wrong.

[Vasconia]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

The guy is still under contract at RedBull for another two years! So he has to work for them even when he doesn't have a race seat! How awful!

Yep RedBull have destroyed that kid.
Yes he isn't the best driver in the world by a long shot but at one point he was actually showing some skill.

He is better than Magnussen and Grosjean when Kyvat's head is right for a start. To be 'sacked' 3 times by the same group and to still be under contract is extreme. How the hell does he turn up for work now?

I have criticized Kyvat sometimes because of some of his comments during this season but I do think he is a good drivers, just take a look to his results in RB. He is a Little bit mentally weak but he has suffered so much!!. Instead of taking care of him RB has destroyed his confidence.

[Manoah2u]

well, he plowed twice into vettel in just a few corners after all. and that was not a single incident.

[GPR-A duplicate2]

I have criticized Kyvat sometimes because of some of his comments during this season but I do think he is a good drivers, just take a look to his results in RB. He is a Little bit mentally weak but he has suffered so much!!. Instead of taking care of him RB has destroyed his confidence.

Kvyat was a surprise pick to Toro Rosso in 2014, when Ric moved over to RB. It was a surprise because up until that point, everyone expected Antonio Felix Da Costa to join Toro Rosso as he was highly regarded young talent. Helmut Marko decided not to bring Da Costa due to some aspects of driving, where he thought Da Costa need to improve. Kvyat was a far more junior and was picked up out of nowhere. Since that point, Da Costa is a forgotten history. Kvyat proved to be way more than everything that Da Costa was "perceived to be and rejected for".

With the same opportunities, I feel that Da Costa would have been performing far better. Alguersuari was a great talent too, that got dumped by Marko.

[AMG.Tzan]

Kyvat dropped...that means Verstappen will win!

What ? This is getting ridiculous now... He did a very good weekend and seemed he learned lessons from his forced leave. Hartley hardly impressed imo...

Yeah that's true! But i read somewhere that the team said Hartley was somewhere around Verstappen's pace...i don't know how or when! But still he was only battling the Sauber's while Kyvat was in the points! Ok maybe Red Bull want to see what he can do with a bit more practice in the last 3 races...Kyvat has been miserable against Sainz all year long...so i see Red Bull's point there!

[zibby43]

I thought thinner air benefited the most powerful engines and make the weaker ones to suffer more. But I may be wrong.

In general, engines (let's use NA motors as a baseline) suffer at altitude because of the thinner air, as you mentioned.

Cool, dense air is best in terms of combustion.

Turbocharged motors, generally, lose less performance than their NA counterparts at higher altitudes. That said, they still lose performance. Altitude requires a higher pressure ratio to maintain the same flow and this pushes the turbocharger toward lower efficiency. Lower efficiency raises heat.

In sum, all teams are going to have to cope with the altitude's effect on the ICE component of the PUs but the teams will try to mitigate this as much as possible with tuning, tweaking, eliminating as much extra heat as possible, etc.