Team Talk: A Sunday Coronation in Mexico City

Cadillac

Sergio Perez, 16th

“It was an enjoyable but chaotic race, especially being able to fight with the cars around us and make some good progress during the first stint. We managed to get up to P13 and I was racing hard, defending my position well. Unfortunately, a slow pit stop due to an issue with one of the wheel guns cost us valuable track position and ultimately compromised our race. We fought back in the second stint, but further incidents and a time penalty caused by a sensor issue, made things difficult.

”It was great to be able to race competitively and fight with some of the faster cars. More than anything, it’s been a real pleasure to be here in Mexico this week, racing in front of these incredible fans and experiencing the support they give us. A big thank you to everyone who came out today and supported us throughout the race. It really means a lot. I’m impressed with what we’ve been able to achieve with this car, and hopefully we can carry this momentum into next season.”

Valtteri Bottas, DNF

“It was a big impact going into Turn 1, but thankfully I’m okay. Thank you to the medical team for checking me over and to everyone who helped at the scene. It is a testament to the hard work the FIA has put in over many years to make our sport as safe as possible.

“We need to work through everything thoroughly as a team to understand exactly what happened, and make sure we learn from it. We had a strong opening lap and made up some places, so it’s disappointing not to finish another race. We’ll regroup now and focus on continuing to make progress in São Paulo next week.”

Marcin Budkowski, Team Principal

“A very eventful day in Mexico City. Firstly, everyone is relieved that Valtteri is okay after the incident on Lap 46. We will fully investigate the cause of this failure and ensure such accidents do not happen again.

“Taking the positives, it was our most competitive weekend in terms of relative pace and very encouraging to see both drivers fighting in the pack. They both had great starts, especially Checo, who had phenomenal first laps after both starts and was running up into P13 at one stage. We had some equipment issues in both pit stops which cost both drivers time and positions on track.

“Congratulations to Checo on his historic 300th Grand Prix start - it has been such a memorable week for him and the whole team at his home race. I would also like to recognize Kimi’s [Antonelli] remarkable season - well done to him and his team.

“Despite the limitations with our current package, we always aim for solid operational execution, and we have come up short today. Lots to analyse on and act on before another important race in Brazil next weekend.”