Sergio Perez is ‘proud’ to have the Mexican Grand Prix in Formula 1 as he prepares for a fifth home race this weekend.
Since making its return in 2015, the stop in Mexico City has become a favourite on the calendar with the Racing Point driver obviously the local hero but the atmosphere, in general, is one of the best all season.
The man from Guadalajara, the country’s second-biggest city, has a solid record at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, with three top 10’s and a best result of P7 in 2017.
And in his preview, Perez reflected on the significance of the event to him.
“The race in Mexico is a hugely important weekend for me,” he said. “It’s my home race and I always feel very proud to see Formula 1 back in Mexico.
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“We’ve just had the notice that the race contract has been extended for another three years, which is great news for the sport and for Mexico.
“Everybody tells me how much they love the race – my colleagues, the media and the fans,” Perez added. “It’s our chance to show everybody the Mexican way of life and how much we love sports.”
The Mexican GP has also become known as one of F1’s less predictable races, with the unique environment often not favouring the fastest cars.
“The track is a pretty challenging one, especially when you consider we are driving the cars at a high altitude,” Checo explained.
“It’s tough on the drivers physically and it’s hard work for the power unit as well because the air is so thin.
“Also, because of the altitude, you have much less downforce on the car and the car can sometimes get quite loose through those fast corners.”
Today’s version of the Autodromo also sees three distinct sections, with the long straights to start, the sweeping turns in the middle and the slow, technical part at the end.
“I think the middle sector is my favourite part of the lap – the fast and flowing section, which can be very tricky and it’s easy to make a mistake through there,” Perez said.
“The final sector also has the stadium section and when it’s full of fans the atmosphere is like nothing else. Each time I drive through there, even during practice, I can hear the fans and feel their support.”
Of course, having pride in your home race also means you are highly motivated to have the best finish possible and Racing Point head to Mexico with momentum on their side.
“We expect to be competitive and to be fighting for points on Sunday,” team boss Otmar Szafnauer stated.
“The car has evolved significantly over the last couple of months and Mexico City is another chance to demonstrate the progress we have made recently.”