Verstappen: Important to hit the ground running in Mexico

On the back of his most dominant weekend this season, the 2025 United States Grand Prix, Verstappen is looking to keep the pressure on his McLaren rivals as he seeks to defend his F1 Drivers' Crown, as he is now just 40 points behind Piastri after the gap was as high as 104 points back in August.

With McLaren recently dropping the ball, especially on the drivers' side, and Red Bull Racing apparently finding the silver bullet, unlocking the full performance of their RB21, Verstappen has come back into contention for a fifth consecutive F1 Drivers' Championship.

Previewing this weekend in Mexico, where F1 races at the altitude of 2 km, Verstappen said: "We have gained a lot of positive momentum over the past few races.

"We want to keep pushing and extracting as much performance out of the car as we can, and the Team have been working hard to do this.

"We need to keep having perfect weekends to fight for the Championship, so it is important to hit the ground running in Mexico," the Dutchman insisted.

He added: "The circuit tends to suit our car, and it will be all about managing our tyres and the grip. Of course, the high altitude always brings unique challenges, decreasing the air density, which will be affecting everyone.

"Mexico is always a fun party atmosphere, so it will be exciting to round up the double header there," Verstappen concluded.

The two drivers Verstappen has to worry about, Norris and Piastri, each head to Mexico with a certain target. The Briton needs to close the gap to his teammate, who has to bounce back and protect his lead.

Norris said ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix: "Mega excited to be heading to Mexico. It's a place I love coming to, and the track is fun to drive. Mexico City is full of fans who love the sport, so I'm looking forward to feeling the energy out there.

"After finishing on the podium in Austin, I want to build from that and fight for more points this weekend," he added.

As for Piastri, he is hoping that back-to-back races will allow him to recover after a below-par weekend in Austin; he commented: "Heading straight into another race weekend is a good opportunity to get back in the car and work with the team to maximise our performance.

"I'm confident it can be a productive weekend. I'm looking forward and focusing on getting the very best out of myself in Mexico," the Australian concluded.

Verstappen is the most F1 driver to win in Mexico having done that five times.