Expectations of a thrilling contest were high heading into Formula 1’s 2022 Mexico City Grand Prix. Dominant title winner Max Verstappen may have secured a sixth pole of his campaign of campaigns, but there was a serious threat from two rival cars in between him and team-mate Sergio Perez on the grid. Plus, this race had not been won from pole in six years, the long run to Turn 1 making things harder for the polesitter punching the first hole through the air having much to do with that stretch.
The boisterous crowd and a colourful grid set-up charged the atmosphere, with Perez’s every move applauded and chanted. But it was the possibility of Mercedes taking a first 2022 victory that made this race so different to the 19 that had come before, with Ferrari a rare non-factor.
It wasn’t to be, the contest ultimately lifeless, with Verstappen securing a 14th victory of his second title-winning season ahead of Lewis Hamilton. In doing so he set a new record for most victories in one F1 championship.
But it was still Mercedes’ strongest showing of 2022 given its strategy briefly looked like having the upper hand and it had the pace to threaten Verstappen’s pole-clinching run in qualifying too. There were several reasons why – the first of which being the much-discussed altitude factor at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, which negated the W13’s ongoing drag issues with its thin air at 7350ft above sea level.
So, the race rather fizzled out on-track, before the chaotic celebration scenes enlivened things again. And here are nine reasons why the promise wasn’t delivered, leaving podium party memories instead of a classic race.
1 LACK OF OVERNIGHT RAIN CEMENTS ONE-STOP STRATEGY
The general expectation heading into the race was that it would be a two-stop affair, if the drivers eschewed tyre management and pushed on – taking life out
