Mexican Grand Prix winner Max Verstappen admits concerns over reliability did cross his mind as four of the Renault-powered cars which started failed to make the finish of Sunday's race.

The Dutchman would ultimately have a trouble-free run to the chequered flag after claiming the lead from Sebastian Vettel in the first sequence of corners at the start with the German then touching Lewis Hamilton exiting Turn 3 causing damage to the Ferrari and Mercedes, dropping them out of contention.

In fact, Verstappen's margin of victory would eventually be just under 20 seconds to Valtteri Bottas in P2 with the 20-year-old pleased his Red Bull matched the potential it had shown on Friday.

“I was confident that the car was going to be good because just looking at the long-run pace, it was very easy for us to do quick lap times. We just had to make sure the balance of the car was correct to be able to sustain that,” he explained.

“The start itself was not great because I was very high on the limiter which is not great, I don't know why, but then it was actually perfect because I had a good tow on Sebastian and went around the outside in Turn 1, and from there on I was just doing my own race, to be honest.

Without the threat of his two main rivals, Verstappen admitted: “This was actually one of my easiest races of my whole career. I was so far in front, I was like let's cut a corner so we get a five-second penalty just to make it more interesting!” he joked, referring to the last lap controversy at COTA seven days prior.

“It was a good race, I was very happy about that. Of course after last week, this is a great result.”

Throughout the Grand Prix, his engineer was attempting and often failing to tell his driver to back off over engine worries, but Max was already aware of the problems those using the French manufacturer were having.

“I could see a lot of cars blowing up and retiring so I was definitely a bit worried,” he said. “We looked after our engine and everything seemed to work pretty well. I saw on the TV screen Daniel (Ricciardo) had retired and I saw a Toro Rosso on fire.

“I thought ‘oh God, don’t make this happen to me’ – we turned the engine down. I have a new engine so maybe that helped, but Daniel had a new one too. I had my bad luck at the beginning of the year so I am very happy that this time nothing happened to me.”

Max Verstappen admits he was "super annoyed" not to claim his first pole in Formula 1 after being beaten by Sebastian Vettel in the closing moments on Saturday's Qualifying session at the Mexican Grand Prix.

The Red Bull looked on course to become the youngest driver to take a pole position, a record currently held by Vettel, after clocking an impressive 1:16.574s to take top spot by four-tenths, but the Ferrari driver would strike on his last flying lap to go almost a tenth clear and secure his 50th career pole.

Though eventually seeing the positives, the 20-year-old acknowledged the gap and the way he missed out was hugely disappointing at first. 

"I'm super annoyed," he states. "I don't know what it was. Well actually in Q3 it just got a bit more difficult, couldn't get the tyres to work and of course second is good but not in this way. I gave it all today, unfortunately, it just wasn't enough. I really wanted that pole position but at least we start in a good position."

Verstappen's second place was only reaffirmed by the stewards some 40 minutes after the session as they investigated whether he impeded Valtteri Bottas' Mercedes after backing off during his first run in Q3.

No further action was warranted, but it came amid the fallout of the post-race penalty issued last weekend in Austin, which saw the Red Bull drop off the podium.

"There is no incident for me. He outbrakes himself in the next corner," Max said, offering his view on the close moment. "I was on the inside, I didn’t hold him, he can think what he wants. I was already past the point where you go to the right. I don’t see an incident."

Lewis Hamilton was left feeling "grateful" to those who work with and support him after securing his fourth Formula 1 championship at the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Briton was left having to recover from the back after picking up a puncture following contact with title rival Sebastian Vettel on the opening lap, but with the German also having to pit for a new  front wing, it meant the Mercedes driver's ninth place finish was more than enough to become the most successful British driver in F1 history.

"Honestly, it doesn't feel real," Hamilton said, describing his emotions right after the race. "It's not the kind of race that I want, when you're 40 seconds behind or something, but I never gave up, and that's what's important, what's in my heart – I kept going right to the end."

For Mercedes, the result also signalled their second title success in a week and the 32-year-old was keen to highlight the effort those at the German manufacturer have made to maintain their place at the top.  

"I'm grateful for today. I just want to lift it up to my family, to God, and thank my team," he stated. "Mercedes have been incredible for the last five years and I'm so proud to be a part of it.

"Winning the Constructors' Championship this year was already a huge feat. Helping me achieve this incredible accomplishment, I'm so grateful.

"I've tried not to leave any stone unturned, that's really the philosophy the whole team has had. As a driver, really trying to always raise the bar.

To his legion of supporters around the world, he added: "Big big thank you to all the fans. Thank you for all your continuous support and your messages. You guys inspire me just as much as you sometimes say that I inspire you.

"Keep pushing, whatever you're going through in your life, don't ever give up. I hope that I stand as a testament to that. There's been so many things thrown at me in my life and I keep going and I do that with the support of you guys, so thank you very much Team LH - we win and lose together."

Looking back on the incident with Vettel, Hamilton, who posed the question if the Ferrari driver had hit his right-rear tyre on purpose over the radio shortly after, insisted he did nothing wrong.

"I had a good start. I don't really know what happened at Turn 3, but I gave him [Vettel] plenty of room, and then I just tried hard to come back,” he claimed. "I don't think I was too aggressive or anything like that, I placed my car in the perfect position."

Now with another title to his name, undoubtedly it will lead to questions as to whether Hamilton could consider 'doing a Rosberg' and retiring as champion, but it seems as though he has plenty of motivation to go on and challenge for more.

"I just kind of feel you should take it one at a time," Lewis said. "I'm really happy with this fourth and I'm going to have to take some time to think about it.

"Just the other day I was reminiscing about growing up in Stevenage and watching TV and dreaming of one day being in Formula 1," he revealed. "Now here we are, 25 years later, whatever it is, and four-time world champion.

"I'm proud of the flag and everyone who represents it. I hope those who are watching are happy with this year's result, and I'll continue to rise it as high as I can."

Lewis Hamilton believes Mercedes will have a stronger race pace during the Mexican Grand Prix, after a rare Qualifying session when the Briton couldn't really contend for pole.

Though in the mix throughout, when eventual polesitter Sebastian Vettel and second-placed Max Verstappen upped their pace in Q3, Hamilton couldn't keep up, finishing almost half a second back in third.

A mistake entering the stadium section on his final flying lap certainly didn't help but at a venue which negates their power advantage, the 32-year-old conceded he just wasn't quick enough.

“Some of the issues we’ve got with the car are highlighted here. It is a little bit like Singapore,” he claimed. “The gap is only a couple of tenths as I was a couple of tenths up on my last lap but didn’t finish it off. Still, that is a significant gap and they just did a better job."

Hamilton admitted his own performance wasn't flawless, however, adding: “Out of all the qualifying sessions I’ve had this year it wasn’t at the top. It was so close through practice and I think it was the first time it has been this close between five for six of us which is exciting and puts us all under pressure."

Looking ahead to the race, though sure he will have a more competitive package, the Mercedes driver thinks opportunities will be limited to try and make progress.

“As I said our race pace is good so I’m not worried about that but you can’t overtake here, you need a big delta to overtake something like over one second or 1.3 seconds, so positioning is important,” he explained. “It is a long way down to Turn 1, so we should have some fun [at the start of the race] tomorrow.

“It is a one-stop strategy so it is a case of how you look after your tyres,” Lewis continued. “There isn’t much degradation so far so in the race it is going to be very tough so I hope that means I can keep close even if I’m not where I want to be at Turn 1."

Ultimately, for Hamilton, there is only one goal in mind and that is to secure the top five he needs to become the champion, with Mexico City as good a place as any for the series leader.

“Winning here would be, seeing the crowd today, it is such a spectacle here with the camera from above, and it looks incredible," he commented. "There is a lot of energy in the crowd so to win it on Mexican soil would be pretty neat.”

Force India deputy boss Bob Fernley hailed the team's relentless progress after they secured fourth place in the constructors' standings in Mexico.

Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez battled to fifth and seventh at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, opening up an unassailable 99-point lead over nearest rivals Williams.

The team have emerged supreme in an intense midfield scrap, finishing a lucrative fourth for the second year in succession with a record points tally.

"It's fantastic to confirm fourth place in the championship with a competitive race in front of so much support from the Mexican fans," Fernley enthused.

"For a while the podium looked to be within reach for Esteban until the Virtual Safety Car handed the advantage to [Kimi] Raikkonen and also brought [Lance] Stroll into play.

"Esteban had to work hard for the final 20 laps fending off the Williams and did a fantastic job despite being on older tyres.

"Sergio made a late pit stop for some new ultrasoft tyres and was catching Stroll quickly, but we just ran out of laps.

"This result is another demonstration of the progress we have made this season and fourth place in the championship for the second year in a row is a wonderful reward for the entire team."

Ocon climbed to third at the start, capitalising on the turn three incident between Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, but would be denied a maiden podium by Ferrari's fightback.

"For a while I believed the podium was possible because I was sitting in third place for so long," the Frenchman said.

"I made a great start and then I pushed as hard as I could in the free air. Sadly the Virtual Safety Car gave Kimi an advantage during the pit stops and he was able to overtake us.

"The final few laps of the race with Stroll behind me were not easy. He had fresher tyres and managed to catch me, so I had to give it everything to stay ahead.

"When you work so hard for a result it feels very satisfying."

Sebastian Vettel would produce an excellent final lap in Q3 to beat Max Verstappen and claim a somewhat unexpected pole position for Sunday's Mexican Grand Prix, the 50th of his Formula 1 career.

The Red Bull driver had looked destined to become the sport's youngest ever polesitter following two blistering laps in Q2 and again in the top 10 shootout, but the four-time world champion would deny him going just under a tenth faster with a 1:16.488s to start at the front of the grid.

Lewis Hamilton couldn't quite get in the fight in third, making a mistake on his final flying lap at Turn 12, but even from the second row, it would take something unexpected to prevent the Mercedes man from securing the top five he needs to be crowned champion for the fourth time.

Verstappen's front row start was in jeopardy for some time after the Qualifying hour as the stewards investigated whether he impeded Valtteri Bottas after backing off on his first run in Q3, as the pair got close entering stadium section.

Ultimately, the stewards took no further action and the Finn would go on to claim fourth ahead of compatriot Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari. The top six would be completed by Esteban Ocon, as the Frenchman produced a stellar last lap to beat a struggling Daniel Ricciardo into sixth by one-hundredth of a second.

The Australian was some nine-tenths down on his teammate in seventh and only just ahead of Nico Hulkenberg's Renault as the three drivers were covered by 0.029s. Carlos Sainz was three-tenths back in ninth but in front of Sergio Perez leaving the Mexican a disappointing 10th for his home race.

A stricken Brendon Hartley early in Q2 due to engine problems, limited the Williams duo to just a single lap to try and make it into Q3 but, after being on the brink throughout Practice, that remained the case as Felipe Massa missed out by two-tenths in 11th and teammate Lance Stroll had a poor final sector but still claimed 12th.

That's because the two McLaren's opted to only run in Q1 due to engine penalties dropping them to the back of the grid. Fernando Alonso would prove what the car was capable of in the first 18 minutes, setting a time which would have put him ninth on the grid, but ultimately meant very little as they fill the back row.

Despite his engine failure, Hartley will start 13th for Sunday's race pending any engine penalties of his own, but that can't be said for his teammate Pierre Gasly, with the Frenchman starting 18th after being unable to participate in Qualifying as Toro Rosso changed the engine which broke in Practice 3.

The beneficiaries are Sauber and Haas, with the Swiss team beating the American outfit as their problems continued. Marcus Ericsson beat teammate Pascal Wehrlein into what will become 14th as Kevin Magnussen led Romain Grosjean to start 16th and 17th respectively.

Back at the front and, before the weekend it was anticipated the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez would suit Ferrari better than Mercedes but after a problematic Friday Practice, those expectations had been lowered.

Therefore, when Vettel crossed the line it was a little 'out of nowhere' but regardless, it puts the 30-year-old in the perfect place to do all he can to continue this year's championship and that's win the race.

But with Hamilton looking comfortable, it really does seem like only a retirement can stop the Briton from maybe not being on the top step of the podium in Mexico, but certainly being the guy for whom the champagne would taste the sweetest as the 2017 F1 world champion.

Ninth place was good enough for Lewis Hamilton to claim a fourth Formula 1 championship at a Mexican Grand Prix dominated by the fallout of first lap contact and won comfortably by Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

The Mercedes driver made was hit by Sebastian Vettel on the exit of Turn 3, having lost the lead to the Dutchman at Turn 2, with the contact damaging the front wing of the Ferrari and causing a  puncture of the Briton's right-rear tyre forcing both to pit.

With the greater damage, Hamilton would lose a lot of time, falling to the back of the pack, as the German was able to continue the lap at a reasonable speed before falling to 19th after his stop.

That would mean the two championship contenders had to fight their way through, with Vettel needing at worst a top two to continue the fight on to Brazil, but that wouldn't happen as he could only manage fourth confirming Lewis as the champion for 2017.

In the race, the incident left Verstappen alone out front as he pulled away from Valtteri Bottas in the second Mercedes. Esteban Ocon also made the most to jump up from sixth to third as Kimi  Raikkonen slipped back to sixth.

Daniel Ricciardo would make quick progress from 16th following his grid penalty and was up to eighth before the newly installed MGU-H failed on Lap 6, forcing the Australian into a second retirement in a week.

He would be one of four drivers using the Renault power unit to have problems with Nico Hulkenberg also suffering an ERS failure, teammate Carlos Sainz pulled in towards the end and Brendon Hartley would pull over in the same place he did in Qualifying, resulting in the only interruption in the race with a Virtual Safety Car.

That would prove crucial in the battle for third, however, as Ocon had pitted early in response to stops by Force India partner Sergio Perez and Hulkenberg before his failure.

Raikkonen would stay out though, building a gap in the clear air and benefitting from stopping under the VSC, which loses him less time, to claim third which the Finn would maintain until the end.

Most drivers used it as a chance to pit, including Verstappen and Bottas at the front and Hamilton, who had fallen a lap down by that stage, and Vettel as they continued their fight back.

Knowing he needed to finish second, Vettel would switch to Ultrasoft tyres and made his way through the remaining midfield cars but would be 16 seconds behind Raikkonen in fourth at the end.

Ocon was disadvantaged by using Soft tyres and this allowed another big gainer from the VSC, Lance Stroll, to close in but the Canadian would just come up shy as the Force India took fifth with the Williams in sixth.

Home favourite Perez also looked to use the extra pace of the Ultrasoft with a second stop but would run out of laps in seventh, still enough to secure the Silverstone outfit fourth in the Constructor's standings.

Kevin Magnussen made sure Haas maximised after Renault's problems in eighth, holding off Hamilton in ninth with the Briton coming out on top in a fun fight with Fernando Alonso late on, with the McLaren driver scoring the final point in 10th.

Felipe Massa would be involved in a punchy battle with Vettel early on but would miss out on points in 11th with Alonso's teammate Stoffel Vandoorne 12th. Pierre Gasly joined Verstappen as the only Renault-powered cars to finish in 13th with Pascal Wehrlein and Romain Grosjean completing the finishers.

But the stories from Mexico revolved around the current and the future with Hamilton joining Vettel and Alain Prost with four F1 titles Verstappen proving once again why in 10 or so years time he could be up there with him after a commanding victory.

Max Verstappen topped to the top of the timesheet going into Qualifying in a very competitive Final Practice session at the Mexican Grand Prix between Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari.

Five of the six drivers would be covered by less than a quarter of a second as the Dutchman posted a new lap record of 1:17.133s on the Ultrasoft tyres, pipping Lewis Hamilton by just 0.075s.

The championship leader's best would come a little later than the 20-year-old, as a loss of power from his Mercedes engine on his first run required a recalibration. What will please Hamilton too, is the deficit falls in the time difference usually made up with the special qualifying modes available to the drivers in Q3.

Sebastian Vettel indicated Ferrari had made progress after a difficult Friday claiming third ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Daniel Ricciardo. Kimi Raikkonen was sixth but a tenth or so back from the leading group.

A major battle is building between Force India and Renault to be the lead midfield team and over a single lap, it is the Silverstone outfit which has the edge versus the French manufacturer.

Sergio Perez thrilled his home crowd by taking seventh ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon, while Carlos Sainz was a tenth-and-a-half back in ninth with Nico Hulkenberg 10th.

Brendon Hartley was an impressive 11th for Toro Rosso, beating the underwhelming Williams' of Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll. Unfortunately, the problems continued across the garage with the Kiwi's teammate Pierre Gasly once again suffering from engine trouble, meaning he will go into Qualifying with just 10 laps of experience around the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.

Kevin Magnussen had to undergo a pre-session fitness test after a medical issue on Friday but was passed fit. The Dane's Haas team continue to struggle, however, as M-Kag was only 14th with teammate Romain Grosjean 17th in his first running since Friday's spin and resulting tyre failure.

After being 'best of the rest' on Friday, Fernando Alonso was only 16th quickest on Saturday morning as attention was on high fuel runs due to the pending grid penalty, teammate Stoffel Vandoorne likewise was on a different run plan and was slowest of those to set a time.

The other notable story was Pascal Wehrlein missing much of the session with an electrical before venturing out late as the German struggled in 18th for Sauber.

Daniel Ricciardo will start the Mexican Grand Prix from the back of the grid after Red Bull chose to change his engine.

Ricciardo, who qualified a disappointing seventh at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, will join the McLarens and Toro Rossos at the foot of the field.

The team have opted to install a new V6, replacing the worn unit which failed during the US GP, and two other elements, incurring a 20-place penalty.

The Aussie, notoriously strong in wheel-to-wheel combat, has vowed to mount a fightback in Sunday's race.

"I think I'm going to start 16th or 17th," he told Autosport after qualifying. "I'm going to charge. I'm going to use every rpm that I've got!"

Sister team Toro Rosso have been plagued by unreliability this weekend, with the Renault power units struggling to cope at high altitude.

"With the problems Toro Rosso has had this weekend, there's some doubts with what we've got at the moment," Ricciardo said.

"This weekend, this engine is towards the end of its life and this track with the altitude and that, it works them a lot harder.

"We knew there would be a bit of a risk here, but for sure there's been quite a few failures this weekend so far."

Daniel Ricciardo is certain Red Bull can extract further performance from the RB13 despite posting the fastest time in Friday Practice at the Mexican Grand Prix.

With engine performance not as crucial despite the long main straight at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, the need for stability under braking and a good high downforce package plays to the strengths of the Milton Keynes outfit, as the Australian proved by beating the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton by a tenth of a second.

Well aware that Red Bull's main weakness remains single lap pace in qualifying, however, Ricciardo admits work needs to be done to ensure they can capitalise on their good form in the races.

“We know Mercedes always find a bit more on a Saturday, so we need to find a couple tenths to still be in the fight with them on Saturday,” he said. “Sunday it is going to be really close. Today was a good day so we will try and keep it going for the rest of the weekend.

“We can still be a bit better from what I feel with the setup I know we can improve a few things. So far it looks okay. It is going to be pretty close these last few races, it is going to be pretty close with the top three teams.”

Mexico provides one of the more unique challenges for teams and drivers as thinner air at high altitude means downforce levels are lower than Monza despite the Monaco-spec wings.

A typically dusty track on a Friday only made it harder with most making a mistake at some point in Practice.

“It is always tricky here with the low grip, really easy to make mistakes as quite a few people spun today and went off track,” Ricciardo commented. “So be very careful, very nice to your car and have a good feeling for it, that helps around here."

As for teammate Max Verstappen, the Dutchman ran a different run plan which would lead to some disruption in the morning before poor reliability then impacted his running in Practice 2.

“I didn’t do many laps, in the morning we tried some new bits for next year which we are trying to understand," he explained, "but I said let’s stop it early and swap it again for the normal parts we have.

“You lose a bit of momentum there already, and also you can’t really set up the car because of the different parts and yeah going into the second session just chasing a bit with the car balance, just trying to correct it because basically, I’ve missed the morning. After we had an engine failure, but it was an old engine so it should be fine.

“Could’ve been a bit better but at least the car is still there,” he added. “Even if I’m not happy with the car balance, we were still third. I guess that’s good."