While Ferrari could have claimed an impressive win at the Mexico City Grand Prix, it was a remarkable race as Max Verstappen suffered a double whammy of his own making, with significant negative repercussions. His repeated uncompromising driving against world championship rival Lando Norris was considered unacceptable and proving costly to his title claim.

Carlos Sainz took a commanding victory for Ferrari at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, a tour de force for the Spanish driver with his teammate Charles Leclerc in third place, making the Scuderia a leading force on the grid that may yet play a significant role in the World Cup.

But after their heated and controversial conflict at the last race in Austin, it was once again Verstappen and Norris who took center stage. Norris took second place for McLaren, Verstappen sixth. The result is crucial for Norris as he looks to catch up with the world champion and put the title fight on the line. With a 10-point blow, the gap to Verstappen decreased from 57 to 47 points, with another 120 still on the table. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell took fourth and fifth place for Mercedes.

Verstappen can only really blame himself for letting his rival chase the race again. Given the speed of the Ferraris, the pair might have been prepared for a race-long battle, at least for the podium spot, but the points difference might have been minimized had Verstappen not insisted on being completely uncompromising in both defense and attack to be.

After an early safety car phase and Norris was faster than Verstappen, the British driver overtook. With sharp hints of Texas, Verstappen once again pushed the British driver wide as he took the spot. Norris was angry. “This guy is dangerous, I just have to avoid an accident or I'll end up in the wall,” he said.

The two are good friends, but in this form it must be questioned how much of Verstappen's attitude towards taking part in races wheel to wheel Norris is prepared to embrace in a good mood.

As the pair continued to battle and Norris once again refused to give up his position, Verstappen came back to him and reclaimed the spot by going too far and pushing Norris off the spot. The stewards immediately gave the Dutchman a 10-second penalty for the first incident in turn four.

Verstappen was told that Norris had “complained a lot” but worse was to come as he was handed a further 10-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in the second incident at turn eight. Verstappen was on the race track, but with 20 seconds left he was now looking to limit the damage.

Verstappen was the beneficiary in Austin, but this time it was hugely costly and once again sparked a heated debate that will not die down quietly. On Friday the drivers had met to discuss the driving rules, particularly in relation to pushing each other off the track, as set out in the FIA ​​Guidelines on Driving Standards, and there was apparent agreement that they should be adjusted, to prevent further incidents.

The FIA ​​had agreed to address the issue and agree the likely changes with drivers in two races in Qatar. However, the stewards in Mexico felt that Verstappen had clearly exceeded the mark, twice, and a more urgent meeting may now be called ahead of the next round in Brazil next weekend.

Verstappen was upset as always, but it was impossible to ignore that if he had been just a little less aggressive he would have at least been able to finish a few places clear of Norris.

During the only round of pit stops, Verstappen collected his penalty for an agonizingly slow wait in his pit, ending up in 15th place. He charged hard to get back, but the damage was done. If Norris can see this tough battle through to the end, Verstappen might look back on these moments of optimism with some regret.

Norris managed to finish second ahead of Leclerc on lap 63, but Sainz and Ferrari took a deserved win. The Scuderia has two wins for the first time this season and it was another very significant victory. As one of the fastest cars on the grid, they have finally taken a real step forward.

There are only four meetings left for Norris, with two sprint races remaining, and although he remains the underdog in the title fight, he has at least kept it alive and narrowed the gap. One or two more hits for Verstappen and it could still work.