Hamilton downbeat about Mexico race

● If things go his way, Lewis Hamilton can clinch his sixth drivers’ world title triumph in the rarefied atmosphere of the Mexican Grand Prix today.

It would be a monumental achievement, nudging him ahead of five-time champion Juan Fangio and making him the second most successful driver in Formula One history behind only Michael Schumacher whose seven titles between 1994 and 2004 remain the pinnacle.

The 34-year-old Englishman, though, holds out little hope of either winning the race at a venue ill-suited to the strengths of his Mercedes car or sealing the title.

“Mexico is generally our worst race of the year because of the way our car is set up and it’s going to be a tough one for us,” said Hamilton. History shows that this is one of his least favoured tracks — he has won just once, in 2016, in four races though he did enough in 2017 and 2018 to secure the world titles in Mexico.

Hamilton, who leads the championship by 64 points with four races to go, including Mexico, knows he can take a cautious approach without scrapping for victory today.

He will secure the title by outscoring his Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas, who lies second, by at least 14 points.

Both the in-form Ferrari team and Red Bull, for whom Max Verstappen will hope to complete a hat-trick of Mexican victories after his wins in 2017 and 2018, have high hopes of success in Mexico. —