Verstappen hails Red Bull's 'sharper' F1 race starts

From third on the grid, Verstappen enjoyed a mighty launch off the line as he passed both front-row starting Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.

On the mid-race restart following a red flag, Verstappen again made a swift getaway to secure his lead, which he would build up to 12 seconds over Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton.

For the dominant Red Bull squad, which has won all but one of the 19 races so far, race starts had been one of the few minor chinks in its armour.

But that now also appears ironed out, with Verstappen praising the work done by his team to tidy up its procedures.

"I think it's just doing our procedures a bit better, understanding the tyre grip - it's clutch settings. We just have been probably a bit more sharp on that," Verstappen explained.

"At the beginning of the year, we had a bit of an issue, but then we fixed the issue. But then I think we still didn't do the right thing with tyre temperatures [and] clutch settings.

"It's all very sensitive. if you're just next to it, you might have too much wheelspin or not enough engagement. It's very difficult to get right and I think today especially it was very good."

Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19

Verstappen's team-mate Sergio Perez also made a great start from fifth, challenging Leclerc and Verstappen into Turn 1. 

But his race ended after contact with Leclerc as the home hero, spurred on by the Mexican masses, attempted an overambitious swoop to claim the lead.

"Starts haven't probably been our strongest asset this year, but certainly the three starts we had here were all rocketships," commented team boss Christian Horner.

"On this day in history, with the conditions, the tarmac, the altitude and everything, the guys got it just right." 

Horner felt Verstappen was bailed out by Ferrari on the red flag restart as the Scuderia put second-starting Leclerc on the hard tyres rather than challenging him with a softer compound.

"That red flag was the worst possible time when you're in the middle of a two-stop. It neutralises the race and we'd only got a hard set of tyres," he explained.

"After [Leclerc's] long first stint, I was convinced they were going to take a set of mediums, because it's worth about five metres off the startline.  

"So, I was very surprised that they went with the hard tyre."