Hurricane Grace was the strongest tropical cyclone to make landfall in the Mexican state of Veracruz. Grace impacted much of the Leeward Islands and Greater Antilles as a tropical storm, before causing more substantial impacts in the Yucatán Peninsula and Veracruz as a hurricane. It was the seventh named storm, second hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season. Originating from a tropical wave in the Main Development Region, the primitive system tracked west-northwest across the Atlantic Ocean towards the Antilles, becoming a tropical depression on August 14. It strengthened into Tropical Storm Grace later the same day, but weakened back to a depression due to an unfavorable environment. After moving near Haiti as a tropical depression, it strengthened back to a tropical storm and became a hurricane on August 18, reaching an initial peak intensity with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km/h) and a pressure of 986 mbar (29.12 inHg). It weakened back to a tropical storm after its landfall in the Yucatán Peninsula and emerged into the Bay of Campeche, entering a very favorable environment for intensification hours later. Grace then rapidly intensified into a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 120 mph (190 km/h) in about 24 hours. The storm made its final landfall in the state of Veracruz at peak intensity and quickly degenerated into a remnant low over mainland Mexico on August 21; however, its remnants later regenerated into Tropical Storm Marty in the Eastern Pacific on August 23.

The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season was the third-most active Atlantic hurricane season on record in terms of number of tropical cyclones, although many of them were weak and short-lived. With 21 named storms forming, it became the second season in a row and third overall in which the designated 21-name list of storm names was exhausted. Seven of those storms strengthened into a hurricane, four of which reached major hurricane intensity, which is slightly above-average. The season officially began on June 1 and ended on November 30. These dates historically describe the period in each year when most Atlantic tropical cyclones form. However, subtropical or tropical cyclogenesis is possible at any time of the year, as demonstrated by the development of Tropical Storm Ana on May 22, making this the seventh consecutive year in which a storm developed outside of the official season.