Why F1’s Mexico race carries the name of its capital

The Mexico City Grand Prix is named for the capital, not the country, because the event’s backing shifted from the federal government to the city. The title reflects who helped keep the race on the calendar—and where its organisers wanted the spotlight to fall.

The race has changed names and fortunes before

Formula 1 first raced at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in 1963, when the circuit was known as Magdalena Mixhuca. It hosted races through 1970, then disappeared from the calendar amid crowd-control and spectator-safety problems.

The venue returned between 1986 and 1992 under its current name, honouring brothers Ricardo and Pedro Rodríguez. That spell ended as the track surface deteriorated and funding dried up.

A new chapter began in 2015, backed by a five-year agreement involving Mexican promoter CIE and Formula One Management. Around $360 million in public and private investment went into rebuilding the circuit and nearby infrastructure. Hermann Tilke oversaw a redesign that took the old banked Peraltada corner through the Foro Sol baseball stadium. The presence of Sergio Perez and Esteban Gutierrez on the grid also helped generate domestic commercial interest.

For more on the venue’s layout and history, read our guide to the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

City backing brought the Mexico City title

When the original contract expired in 2019, Mexican president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador declined to renew federal funding. The source article reports that public money was to be directed instead towards infrastructure projects, including the Tren Maya railway.

Mexico City mayor Claudia Sheinbaum then assembled a private trust supported by local business leaders. With the capital’s administration helping finance the race in place of the national government, the event’s identity changed too. After the 2020 edition was cancelled during the pandemic, it was officially renamed the Mexico City Grand Prix from 2021.

The new name presents the race as an event backed by the city, rather than one financed by the country as a whole. It also puts the capital itself at the centre of the promotion.

City-based titles are not unusual in Formula 1. The calendar includes the Miami and Las Vegas Grands Prix in the United States, while the São Paulo Grand Prix is another example of a race named for a particular place rather than its host nation. Our 2026 Mexico City GP preview looks at the stories surrounding this year’s event.