Max Verstappen expertly proved one Laurent Mekies prediction wrong at the Mexican Grand Prix

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Max Verstappen’s push to remain in the 2025 Formula 1 title fight continued on a decent trajectory at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Despite losing ground to McLaren’s Lando Norris in the drivers’ championship, the gap at the top is now just 36 points with four races to go. Red Bull will sniff an opportunity to make history, and will continue to bring upgrades in a bid to dethrone their rivals from top spot.

It now feels like Verstappen’s main problem in the title battle could be Norris, who has all the momentum and has performed well in recent weeks. He dominated the Mexican Grand Prix, and it didn’t look like anyone could compete with him, while teammate Oscar Piastri couldn’t even make the podium.

Verstappen almost crashed at the start in Mexico City and clashed multiple times with Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton. His first stint was a bit of a nightmare. Fred Vasseur was unfazed by Verstappen avoiding a penalty, despite his driver receiving a 10-second penalty for a similar infringement.

READ MORE: Charles Leclerc taunted Max Verstappen in brilliant radio message after late VSC at Mexican Grand Prix

Max Verstappen proved to Laurent Mekies that he could pass Charles Leclerc at the Mexican Grand Prix

While Hamilton claimed Verstappen pushed him wide, the two would meet on track again in their second stints, but the latter passed with relative ease. It was a monster soft tyre stint that helped Verstappen gain multiple places, after dropping as low as eighth at one stage.

Verstappen says winning the 2025 F1 title wouldn’t be his biggest achievement, but would certainly go down as the biggest comeback in the championship’s existence, by more than double the deficit that anyone else has ever recovered from.

Once more, he managed to prove team boss Laurent Mekies wrong by displaying a surprising turn of speed in Mexico. The Red Bull team principal told Canal+ before the race that he didn’t have the pace to challenge Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

However, without a late Virtual Safety Car, it was inevitable that Verstappen would get the chance to pass Leclerc on the final lap for second place. Especially after the first half of the race, it was a position that his team never expected him to be in.

“It will be very difficult for Max to catch up with Lando,” said Mekies. “Charles will probably be a bit too fast as well, but I think a podium finish is possible. We need to beat George and Lewis – that’s our realistic goal.”

READ MORE: Max Verstappen reveals ‘biggest threat’ to 2025 title fight with Red Bull needing ‘perfect’ finish

Why Max Verstappen still has a good chance of competing for the 2025 F1 title

Although Norris won Sunday’s race by more than 30 seconds, he won’t enjoy such an advantage at upcoming events in Brazil or Las Vegas.

F1 insiders think Verstappen will win, but he needs to make sure that he’s within 10 points of the McLaren drivers at the final race in Abu Dhabi to have a chance.

Brazil is a track that he usually goes well at, and the short, slow corners in sector two will suit his car a lot more than it does McLaren’s.

The following race in Las Vegas is arguably the Woking-based outfit’s weakest circuit, and could give them some problems. It’s one that Verstappen will have highlighted.

And finally, Qatar is a favourite of Piastri, and the high-speed nature plays to McLaren’s strengths, but Red Bull’s car has improved recently, and Verstappen should be able to compete for a podium at the very least.