With just two races remaining in this year's Formula One season, ESPN takes a look at how the 2016 title battle can be won and lost.
Nico Rosberg is in the box seat for a maiden F1 title, leading Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by 19 points heading to Brazil where a win would see him crowned champion. The German has the luxury of knowing that he does not even have to win a race in order to beat Hamilton to the title.
With two second-place finishes behind Hamilton he would still win by five points and even one second and one third would be good enough, handing him a two-point advantage come the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi.
So can Hamilton pull off a remarkable comeback and snatch the championship from under Rosberg's nose, or will the German be celebrating his first title?
How things stand
1. Rosberg - 349 (9 wins)
2. Hamilton - 330 (8 wins)
Where the title can be won
Rosberg has entered the last two rounds with a chance of taking the title, but Mexico is the first time he has been able to clinch it regardless of his teammate's result. However, if Hamilton can record a third consecutive win and come out on top at Interlagos then the championship will definitely go down to the wire at the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on November 27.
Hamilton has plenty of experience of fighting for a championship at the last round of a season, having done so on four previous occasions (2007, 2008, 2010 and 2014). Rosberg, on the other hand, can only draw on one previous title battle at a season finale, when he lost out to Hamilton in 2014.
Who needs what?
Rosberg
To put it simply, Rosberg will be champion if he wins in Brazil, regardless of where Hamilton finishes. Beyond that there are a number of different title permutations that can pan out depending on where the Mercedes drivers finish.
Outscoring Hamilton by seven points will put the title beyond the Briton's reach. This equates to:
If Hamilton is second, Rosberg needs to win.
If Hamilton is third, Rosberg needs to win.
If Hamilton is fourth, Rosberg needs to be second. This scenario would see Hamilton and Rosberg tied on points and race wins if Hamilton claimed victory in Abu Dhabi and Rosberg did not score. Rosberg would therefore win the title on count back, with four second place finishes compared to Hamilton's three.
If Hamilton is fifth, Rosberg needs to be second.
If Hamilton is sixth, Rosberg needs to be third.
If Hamilton is seventh, Rosberg needs to be third.
If Hamilton is eighth, Rosberg needs to be fourth.
If Hamilton is ninth, Rosberg needs to be fifth.
If Hamilton is 10th, Rosberg needs to be sixth.
Hamilton
Hamilton's best chance of keeping his title chances alive is to win both races. If he wins in Brazil and Abu Dhabi and Rosberg can only record one second and a fourth, Hamilton would claim the championship by a single point.
The size of Hamilton's task
Hamilton certainly has his work cut out if he is going to win a fourth F1 crown, not only due to the sizeable points gap but also because in nine attempts he has never won in Brazil. But the Briton has already managed to wipe out a 43-point deficit after Spain, turning it into a 6-point lead six races later, after winning in Hungary.
Following a record-breaking four wins in July, Hamilton boasted a 19-point advantage heading into the summer break, but his momentum took a hit when the effects of suffering a number of engine problems earlier in the season forced Hamilton to start from the back in Belgium. Rosberg took advantage and enjoyed a 45-point swing back in his favour over the next four races, until Hamilton fought back with wins in the United States and Mexico.
Reliability could play a major factor in the outcome of this year's championship for either driver. Since a heart-breaking engine blowout while leading the Malaysian Grand Prix, Hamilton has had a clean run of reliability. A single problem for Rosberg would swing the title back towards Hamilton, while another issue for Hamilton would almost certainly end his hopes.
Championships have, however, been won in equally difficult situations to the one Hamilton faces, as he knows all too well. Hamilton was 17 points clear (under the old points system) of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen heading into the final two rounds of 2007, but the Finn successfully overturned the deficit to snatch the championship by one point.