Could the Mexico City Grand Prix Become a Double Celebration for Mercedes?

Ever since pre-season testing, it was clear across the Formula 1 paddock that Mercedes were the overwhelming favourites for the constructors' title. The Silver Arrows are now well on course to secure it, despite a few reliability hiccups and dropped points over the course of the campaign.

Heading into the final six rounds of the season, the Brackley-based squad leads the standings with 578 points—holding a commanding 133-point cushion over their nearest pursuers, Ferrari. Third and fourth-placed McLaren and Red Bull trail by 239 and 246 points respectively, with both teams virtually certain to be mathematically eliminated from contention after next week's United States Grand Prix.

Following the race in Austin, the maximum points haul available for any team will drop to 215. That means even a Mercedes 1-2 finish (43 points) paired with a non-score for Ferrari would not be enough for the Silver Arrows to seal the crown in Texas. In that scenario, Brackley's advantage would stretch to 176 points with 215 still on the table.

In Mexico City, however, Mercedes could mathematically put the championship to bed, as only 172 points will remain after the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez event. To wrap up the title in Mexico, the Silver Arrows must outscore Ferrari by at least 39 points over the next two rounds, while conceding no more than 67 and 74 points to McLaren and Red Bull respectively.

A Mercedes triumph in Mexico City could turn into a double celebration, as Andrea Kimi Antonelli is heavily tipped to seal the drivers' world championship there as well. While the Italian mathematically has an outside chance of doing so in the United States, his crowning is far more realistic in Mexico on 1 November, given the improbable sequence of events required for him to take the title in Austin.