Verstappen capitalized on Ferrari's internecine warfare to grab second on the opening lap in Mexico, while teammate Hadjar's day ended before it began. Russell tagged the Red Bull into a lap-one spin that dropped Hadjar to dead last, and he never clawed back into the points.
The contrast was stark: one Red Bull vaulting past squabbling Ferraris (Leclerc already carrying a five-second penalty), the other writing off his weekend before Turn 3. Hadjar's recovery drive went nowhere. Meanwhile, Liam Lawson showed what damage control looks like, dragging his Racing Bulls entry from a pit-lane start to two points.
Hamilton posted the fastest lap of the race on lap 50—a 1:19.268 that edged Verstappen by six hundredths. The interactive data shows Ferrari and Red Bull trading tenths all race, but it was Leclerc's early penalty that tilted the result. Verstappen now carries momentum into Brazil, where Ferrari's pit wall can't afford another own goal.
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