Ferrari suffered their worst race in almost a decade, as neither driver manages to run the car until the end of the Mexican Grand Prix.
Kimi Räikkönen’s issues began on Saturday when an engine issue forced the team to replace the power unit, giving Räikkönen a 35-place grid penalty. This meant that he would start from the nineteenth spot on the grid, sandwiched between the two McLaren cars that were also given penalties for engine replacements.
When it came time to go racing, Räikkönen began to make up some ground. He had managed to advance to sixth position early in the race, demonstrating the true performance of both himself and the car he was piloting. On lap 21, Räikkönen found himself fending off Valtteri Bottas’ Williams. As the pair headed into turn four, Bottas tried to make the move on the outside of Räikkönen. When the drivers made their way to turn five, Bottas was on the inside of the Ferrari. Räikkönen closed the door on Bottas and the two made contact. The Williams escaped without serious damage, but Räikkönen’s Ferrari was left with a damaged rear suspension.
Sebastian Vettel struggled during the race as well. The issue began on the first lap when Daniel Ricciardo and the German made contact. This left Vettel with a rear puncture, forcing him to pit in for new tyres. From this point onward, Vettel made many errors as he attempted to make up ground. This over driving the car led to a spin and many times running wide. He eventually overcooked the car and sent it into the barriers in turn seven.
In the end, this was the first double retirement for the Ferrari team since the 2006 Australian Grand Prix. In that race, Felipe Massa crashed out in an opening lap accident and Michael Schumacher spun off 32 laps later. The current Ferrari team principal, Maurizio Arrivabene, put a positive spin on today’s events. The team Tweeting a quote from Arrivabene following the race: “This year we touched the sky and today the bottom, this strengthens the team’s character.”
