autocar-logo
Delhi

F1: Rosberg defeats Hamilton to win Mexican GP

The pole-sitter held off a challenge from Hamilton at the start and then dictated the race, surviving a late safety car period.
3 min read2 Nov '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer
1K+ views

Nico Rosberg took his first Formula 1 victory since June as he comfortably led home Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in the first Mexican Grand Prix for 23 years.

The pole-sitter held off a challenge from Hamilton at the start and then dictated the race, surviving a late safety car period which cancelled out his lead to secure his fourth win of the season and 12th of his career.

Newly-crowned world champion Hamilton crossed the line second for his 15th podium in 17 races this season with Valtteri Bottas completing the podium.

Such was the pace of the two Mercedes that they were able to pit for a second time before the safety car came out and still rejoin in front of the rest of the field.

Hamilton questioned Mercedes' decision to bring him in, as he felt his tyres were in good shape, however his team insisted he had to pit for safety reasons, and he eventually relented.

The result means Rosberg reclaims second in the drivers' standings after Sebastian Vettel crashed out.

Vettel started third but collided with Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo at the first corner and picked up a puncture.

The four-time champion complained about Ricciardo's driving on team radio but though the stewards investigated the incident, they deemed no further action was necessary.

Vettel recovered to the pits but he had a messy race, spinning at the esses and then crashing out of the race at the same spot when the rear end of the car got away from him - bringing out the safety car.

There was more drama for Ferrari when Kimi Raikkonen collided with Valtteri Bottas for the second time in three races following their last-lap clash in Sochi.

The duo went side-by-side into Turn 4 with Bottas' front-left hitting Raikkonen's right-rear and breaking the Ferrari's suspension.

Raikkonen retired instantly, signalling Ferrari's first double retirement since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix.

Red Bull's Daniil Kvyat finished fourth, after losing a place to Bottas on the restart, while Daniel Ricciardo and Felipe Massa completed the top six.

Nico Hulkenberg was seventh, one place ahead of home favourite Sergio Perez, who received rapturous cheers throughout the grand prix and was the only driver who managed to only make one stop.

Max Verstappen and Romain Grosjean completed the top 10.

Pastor Maldonado missed out on his fourth consecutive points finish in 11th, with Marcus Ericsson, Carlos Sainz Jr, Jenson Button, Alexander Rossi and Will Stevens the other finishers.

McLaren's Fernando Alonso cited a lack of power just after the start and was told by the team to retire the car at the end of lap one.

Shortly before the restart Button radioed his team to say the brakes on Felipe Nasr's car were on fire and shortly after, the Sauber retired in the 55,000-seater stadium section, reporting his brakes were "finished".

MEXICAN GP RESULT

Nico RosbergMercedes1h42m35.038s71
2
Lewis HamiltonMercedes1.954s71
3
Valtteri BottasWilliams/Mercedes14.592s71
4
Daniil KvyatRed Bull/Renault16.572s71
5
Daniel RicciardoRed Bull/Renault19.682s71
6
Felipe MassaWilliams/Mercedes21.493s71
7
Nico HulkenbergForce India/Mercedes25.860s71
8
Sergio PerezForce India/Mercedes34.343s71
9
Max VerstappenToro Rosso/Renault35.229s71
10
Romain GrosjeanLotus/Mercedes37.934s71
11
Pastor MaldonadoLotus/Mercedes38.538s71
12
Marcus EricssonSauber/Ferrari40.180s71
13
Carlos SainzToro Rosso/Renault48.772s71
14
Jenson ButtonMcLaren/Honda49.214s71
15
Alexander RossiMarussia/Ferrari2 Laps69
16
Will StevensMarussia/Ferrari2 Laps69
-
Felipe NasrSauber/FerrariBrakes57
-
Sebastian VettelFerrariSpun off50
-
Kimi RaikkonenFerrariCollision21
-
Fernando AlonsoMcLaren/HondaPower Unit1

DRIVERS' STANDINGS

Lewis Hamilton345
2
Nico Rosberg272
3
Sebastian Vettel251
4
Valtteri Bottas126
5
Kimi Raikkonen123
6
Felipe Massa117
7
Daniil Kvyat88
8
Daniel Ricciardo84
9
Sergio Perez68
10
Max Verstappen47
11
Romain Grosjean45
12
Nico Hulkenberg44
13
Felipe Nasr27
14
Pastor Maldonado26
15
Carlos Sainz18
16
Jenson Button16
17
Fernando Alonso11
18
Marcus Ericsson9
19
Roberto Merhi0
20
Alexander Rossi0
21
Will Stevens0

CONSTRUCTORS' STANDINGS

Mercedes617
2
Ferrari374
3
Williams/Mercedes243
4
Red Bull/Renault172
5
Force India/Mercedes112
6
Lotus/Mercedes71
7
Toro Rosso/Renault65
8
Sauber/Ferrari36
9
McLaren/Honda27
10
Marussia/Ferrari0

Force India likely to be rebranded as Aston Martin Racing

Aston Martin to return to F1 racing after its brief previous foray in 1959-60.
2 min read2 Nov '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer

Maruti Autocross Challenge at APS 2015

Pedal to the metal in true gymkhana style; it’s all happening at APS 2015!
1 min read1 Nov '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer

F1: Rosberg beats Hamilton to Mexican GP pole

The German beat Mercedes F1 team-mate Lewis Hamilton to the top spot by 0.188 seconds.
2 min read1 Nov '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer

Rosberg leads Red Bulls in Mexican GP practice

On a soft-tyre run in the second session at the Mexico City track, Mercedes driver Rosberg was quickest with a lap of 1m21.531s.
3 min read31 Oct '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer

MRF Challenge 2015 to kick off at Yas Marina

This driver line-up for this weekend is headed by GP2 driver Nobuharu Matsushita - the team-mate to GP2 champion Stoffel Vandoorne.
2 min read30 Oct '15
Staff WriterStaff Writer