Mexico already faster than Monza
Formula 1 cars are already reaching higher top speeds at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez than they do at Monza.
As Motorsport.com already reported, pre-event simulation data suggested that the top speed of cars in Mexico this weekend could top the previous benchmark from the Italian GP.
That is because the less dense air, due to the 2200m elevation of Mexico, means there is less drag than normal.
Furthermore, teams are able to ramp up the speed of their turbos to ensure their engines deliver the same amount of horsepower, even though there is less oxygen in the air to feed the internal combustion engine.
The highest speed recorded in qualifying at the Italian Grand Prix was delivered by Sergio Perez, who hit 354.6 km/h in his Force India.
In Mexico, the cars are already quicker than that, with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg both topping 360km/h during early practice.
The top 10 from the Mexico speed trap in FP1 is as below:
| 1 | Lewis Hamilton | 362.3 km/h |
| 2 | Nico Rosberg | 361.2 km/h |
| 3 | Sergio Perez | 356.7 km/h |
| 4 | Felipe Massa | 355.8 km/h |
| 5 | Valtteri Bottas | 354.1 km/h |
| 6 | Pastor Maldonado | 351.0 km/h |
| 7 | Kimi Raikkonen | 350.6 km/h |
| 8 | Daniil Kvyat | 350.0 km/h |
| 9 | Jolyon Palmer | 349.1 km/h |
| 10 | Sebastian Vettel | 347.8 km/h |
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