Mexican GP set to extend F1 contract despite Perez departure

The Mexican Grand Prix is set for a renewal to its Formula 1 race contract with a deal understood to be announced in the coming days, according to Mexico City's head of government Clara Brugada.

Brugada, who was elected to the post last year, announced in a press conference on 24 April that "next week, we will be signing the agreement with F1" when questioned about the future of the race.

Indications are that the new agreement will keep the race on the calendar until the end of 2028 with a three-year extension, similar to the previous two extensions agreed with F1. The race will continue to be privately funded, after losing federal government support in 2018.

That year, then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador withdrew the funding that the government had been providing for the race. This led businesspeople to form a private trust, and the government of Mexico City ensured that it could maintain a relationship with F1 to keep the round on the calendar. After an initial five-year contract, the race was renewed in 2019 on a three-year basis.

The agreement lasted until 2022, although in reality only two races were held because in 2020 F1 did not leave Europe and the Middle East due to the COVID-19 health crisis. Another new three-year contract allowed the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez and F1 to extend the deal until 2025.

CIE, the event's promoter company, has not disclosed the arrangement, but suggestions are that the key details had been prepared for the renewal since last year, even in light of the departure of Mexican driver Sergio Perez from the grid.

Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing, holds up the Mexican flag

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

It had been suggested that the race's future had hinged on Perez's involvement in the championship, given his popularity had been one of the catalysts for the race's reinstatement after 21 years away from the calendar, but evidently the desire for the race remains without him.

Per the company's executives, the strategy of diversifying ticket sales in Mexico and abroad had allowed them to create a solid fan base that did not rely solely on the presence of a local driver.

Perez was released from his Red Bull contract at the end of 2024 after two seasons largely defined by poor results and an inability to match Max Verstappen, after an initially promising start to 2023.

The Guadalajara-born driver has been linked with a potential return to the championship with Cadillac, but is currently taking time out from racing in order to consider his future.