Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber will go into the thin air of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, the venue for this weekend's Mexican Grand Prix.

A week after making some tentative steps forward in Austin, the team will go south of the border for another busy weekend of action in Mexico City: Robert Shwartzman will deputise for Zhou Guanyu in FP1, as mandated by the regulations, but the main driver pairing will be back in action from FP2 onwards to maximise the performance of the C44.

Alessandro Alunni Bravi, Team Representative: "We head to Mexico City for the second race of this triple header in the Americas. While the event in Austin was a rather disappointing one, not allowing us to extract the potential of the upgrades we brought there, we as a team must keep our spirits high. Both trackside and back home in Hinwil, work is constantly underway to analyse what exactly didn't work out for us and how we can improve and fight hard to get back in the midfield. Despite the challenges posed by the higher altitudes of Mexico, we are prepared for the weekend ahead, where we expect to benefit from the characteristics of the track. With three full practice sessions, we will have a good opportunity to fine-tune our setup ahead of qualifying and the race, and we will hopefully get back in the mix with our competitors."

Valtteri Bottas: "It's nice to be back in Mexico: they know how to throw a fiesta here, and the atmosphere leading to race day is always exciting. This is a very peculiar track: you run Monaco wings but it feels like Monza, and you need to adapt your driving style to the conditions. The thin air is an added challenge but it makes this race unique. Looking back at Austin, we did manage to match the pace of our rivals early on in the race, which is a positive sign about the new parts we had brought there, and something to build on for the remainder of this triple header. There is still work to do, however, to make sure we can sustain this over the whole race and remain in the pack. We remain committed to developing the car further to address any weakness, and ensure we can consistently be in the mix."

Zhou Guanyu: "One of the positives of racing every week is the opportunity to get back from a difficult race and have an immediate chance to have a better one. We had some positives from last weekend's race, such as our promising pace in the opening laps, and I'm hoping to build on that from Friday onward. I am looking forward to having more practice sessions available and time to work out the best possible setup for the race, as well as maximising the potential of the new parts. We, as a team, need to keep pushing and stay positive as we aim to turn the tide and get back on par with our main competitors both in Qualifying and, more important, on Sunday."