Max Verstappen, speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, on his "surprise" pole position: "I think we were just chasing for the whole weekend but we finally got everything together in qualifying and I am looking forward to today.

Will the Mercedes get you on the start?: "We will see, I am not too worried about Turn One."

Image source, Getty Images

Jolyon Palmer
Former Renault driver on BBC Radio 5 Live

It's a long run to the first corner. That's going to be Mercedes' best chance to stop the Red Bulls here.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer

Image source, Pirelli Twitter

Tyre supplier Pirelli predicts that the best race strategy is a two-stop, starting on the soft tyre and then running two sets of mediums. But the teams are not so sure. At least some think a one-stop is better - starting on mediums and switching to hard at some point - or even to softs if the mediums can be taken to around lap 50, which some believe is possible. A start on soft is likely to mean a stop around lap 15 - if it can even go that far on full tanks; the medium gives teams more flexibility. Tyre wear is hard to predict - so there are a lot of questions going into the race.

If there is a safety car around lap 15, the obvious thing to do is stop for hards - but some might prefer to stay out and push the mediums as long as possible.

Pit-stop loss is between 22 and 23 seconds, 12 seconds under safety car. End of straight impact of DRS is 19km/h - underlining the difficulty Mercedes will have holding back Max Verstappen even if they can get ahead at the start.

Teams will struggle with temperatures - of brakes and engines - in the thin air.

Music producer and performer will.i.am speaking on Sky Sports: "I love engineering and technology, put them together in a sport and this is it. It's the most exciting and exhilarating sport there is for me. For this particular sport there is an opportunity to create some thing so much bigger than the world has seen between arts and sports. Look at this energy here [in Mexico], this is the best."

Image source, Getty Images

A children's choir - excellent. The crowd cheer loudly and then take up the "Checo! Checo!" chant.

National anthem time. If it's anything like the Formula 1 theme tune played by the Mariachi band at the end of qualifying yesterday, we'll be in for a cracker.

Image source, Getty Images

Alpine's Fernando Alonso speaking on Sky Sports: "It is not normally so good for us in Mexico, especially in the first couple of laps. I hope to be able to take Lando [Norris] on the clean side of the track, but then it is going to be demanding. It is going to be stressful for the car, but reliability problems will be the same for everyone, so let's hang on and hope to see the chequered flag."

Team-mate Esteban Ocon tells Sky Sports: "It is hot. There is no air for the brakes or the engine. We are mid grid, we will be are fighting with those around us, so it is going to be tricky, but it is great to be here. Fantastic."

Andrew Benson
BBC Sport’s chief F1 writer

This race was won from third on the grid last year, from fourth in 2019, and second in 2018 and 2017.

Why is it so difficult to win from pole in Mexico, and why is qualifying second and third almost considered an advantage?

Part of the explanation is that the run to the first corner from the grid is more than 800m, one of the longest of the year, which gives the drivers behind a good opportunity to gain ground using the tow.

This is how Verstappen managed to grab the lead at the start last year, despite Mercedes having a front-row lockout - although some of that was Valtteri Bottas, Russell's predecessor in the team, not doing his job properly and failing to block the Red Bull.

The problem for Russell and Hamilton, though, is that the Red Bull remains a quicker car, and it is still prodigiously fast on the straights. Mercedes might have less of a drag disadvantage than usual, but overtaking the Red Bull will remain a problem.

Image source, Getty Images

A front-row seat might not be the perfect place to start in Mexico, as the last four race results show.

Then again, today's polesitter Max Verstappen has triumphed in three of those races, so maybe all is not lost.

2017

Pole - Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari)

Winner - Max Verstappen (Red Bull, started P2)

2018

Pole - Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull)

Winner - Max Verstappen (Red Bull, started P2)

2019*

Pole - Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

Winner - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, started P3)

*Max Verstappen qualified on pole but received a three-place grid penalty for failing to slow for yellow flags.

2021

Pole - Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)

Winner - Max Verstappen (Red Bull, started P3)

McLaren's Lando Norris speaking on Sky Sports: "It's low grip as expected, it's going to be getting a bit hotter. Never feels grippy here. Expecting a difficult race. A slippy one, difficult to manage. We have been having problems with the brakes - they are quite warped. Not ideal, doesn't give me much confidence coming into the race. Will try to deal with it."

Image source, Getty Images

Matt Warwick
BBC Sport

Image source, Ferrari

Not exactly going well for Ferrari at the moment this weekend, but when you're Ferrari you can cheer yourself up by making another amazing car.

This time an announcement they will be back at Le Mans next year as a works team for the first time in 50 years - in the elite hypercar class for the World Endurance Championship.

The 499P is the car. Just... look at it.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

Celebrating pole positions on a Saturday has not been a problem for Ferrari this year but they were unable to replicate the front-row lock-out from Texas a week ago at the circuit Hermanos Rodriguez.

Yesterday was the first time Italian team had failed to get either of their cars into the top three for the first time this season.

Carlos Sainz starts in fifth and Charles Leclerc two places behind in seventh and both drivers conceded Mexico had been a difficult session.

"It was a fight. A clear fight," said Sainz. "I don't know if we haven't nailed the set-up or we just got it wrong with tyres or the altitude is affecting us a bit too much, but it's clear the car is not as competitive over one lap as in other grands prix."

Leclerc, who makes his 100th race start in Formula 1 today, added he had an engine problem that was causing drivability issues, with the engine not responding to his throttle inputs. "If we can fix that," he said, "I am sure we can have a good result."

Problems for Kevin Magnussen already. "Something on the rear. It's either gearbox or suspension," the Haas driver tells his pit wall. The Dane is hit with a five-place grid penalty today after taking his sixth of three allocated internal combustion engines.

Jeremiah Kariuki: Mercedes will be hungry to take a win and Mexico offers them another good chance. But that would mean playing a better strategy than the one for Max and Red Bull. Max will not make it easy for them.

Andrew Priestley: It’s a LOOOOONG run down to turn one at Mexico. Hamilton and Perez starting in 3rd and 4th will be all over the rear wings of their two teammates ahead. There could be carnage at the first chicane.

Matt Warwick
BBC Sport

Image source, Getty Images

Valtteri Bottas had a storming qualifying yesterday, possibly still excited by his big cycling project: a gravel event in his native Finland.

Gravel racing has really taken off, with his missus - women's road cyclist Tiffany Cromwell - even finishing sixth in world governing body the UCI's world championships recently.

Read more on that and Bottas' environmental concerns here.

Image source, Getty Images

Valtteri Bottas left the Lone Star State empty handed after spinning and beaching his Alfa Romeo after 16 laps of racing but he looks determined to right the wrongs of Austin this weekend.

Bottas was in the mix with the front-runners throughout qualifying and lines up sixth on today's starting grid - his best position since securing the same position at the seasoner opener in Bahrain.

“It’s been a while since we had a result like this in qualifying, and I think it’s really uplifting for the whole team," said Bottas. "We’ve been performing well since the start of the week and being able to just carry that performance on from practice one."

The Finn is 10th in the drivers' championship but last scored points at the Canadian Grand Prix in June.

The TV cameras and photographers will be desperate to get a shot of Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton next to each other today. That's because some quotes the Spaniard made to Dutch publication De Telegraaf have caused a bit of a storm.

Two-time world champion Alonso said in an interview that a championship has "less value when you've only had to fight with your team-mate".

However, on Saturday, the Spaniard took to Twitter to say every title is well deserved and he was "tired of the continuous search for headlines."

Hamilton posted his response in the early hours of Sunday morning with... a thumbs up emoji and a picture of the pair on the podium during their McLaren days.