Mexico City Grand Prix Prediction: Formula 1 Odds
Perez has captured third place in each of his past two appearances in Mexico, but has failed to reach the podium in each of his past four races.
“Checo’s” recent struggles are reflected on the Mexico City Grand Prix odds, where he trails the favourites as a +1000 bet to claim his first ever victory in his home race. The winner in four of the past five editions of this race, Max Verstappen leads the way as strong -275 chalk, followed by Lewis Hamilton, who sports +600 odds to earn a third career win in Mexico.
Mexico City Grand Prix Race Time, Weather Forecast
Lights out at the 2023 Mexico City Grand Prix is scheduled for 4:00pm ET on Sunday afternoon at Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. Sunny skies are expected on Sunday, with temperatures forecast to reach into the mid-20s Celsius at race time.
Perez Looking to Lock Up Second Place
It has been a tough home stretch to the season for Sergio Perez. The 33-year-old Mexican produced podium finishes in eight of the first 14 races of the season including wins in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan. However, he has struggled to maintain that pace, both in qualifying and on race day.
Checo saw Lewis Hamilton steadily chip away at his previously firm grasp on second place in the F1 Drivers Standings while finishing outside the top six in each of his three previous races. Indeed, Perez finished well back of Hamilton, who powered to second place in Austin. However, with both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc later getting disqualified when their cars failed to pass post-race inspections, Checo received a much-needed reprieve while getting elevated to fourth place.
Instead of leading Hamilton by just 17 points with four races remaining, Checo’s lead has now grown to 39 points, buoying him on the F1 championship odds without Verstappen to a lofty -275 while Hamilton now sits at +200. While that boost is welcome, Perez is far from assured of finishing the season in second place. However, he has enjoyed impressive stretch runs over the past two years, including top four finishes in five of his finally six races last year.
Lando Norris Riding Podium Streak
The other driver who benefited from Hamilton’s and Leclerc’s misfortune in Austin is Lando Norris. With Hamilton getting disqualified, Norris claimed second place for a third time during a run of four straight trips to the podium. In addition to enjoying improved pace since McLaren made upgrades mid-season, Norris has also demonstrated increased maturity behind the wheel.
That recent run of success has failed to inspire confidence among oddsmakers, who peg the Englishman as +1400 bet on this weekend’s F1 odds. Admittedly, Norris has struggled in previous appearances in Mexico, qualifying no better than eighth and finishing no better than ninth in three previous appearances. However, the recent improvements in both car and driver are tough to ignore on a windy track well suited to Norris.
Accordingly, he should not be overlooked as a high-value +165 bet to reach the podium once again.
As for Hamilton, the seven-time F1 champ has won in Mexico City twice, and has started the past three editions of this race on the two front rows, and offers value as a -175 wager to finish Sunday’s race ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell.
Predictions: Lando Norris podium finish (+165); Lewis Hamilton finish ahead of George Russell (-175); Sergio Perez first in F1 Drivers Standings without Verstappen (+275)