Max Verstappen wins the Japanese Grand Prix!
The favourite justifies the expecations as he goes coast-to-coast in the Japanese grand prix for the third striaght year, with his teammate Perez coming through behind him to make it a one-two Red Bull finish – the third of the season.
Sainz comes through in third, followed by Leclerc for a Ferrari three-four. Norris holds on for fifth. Meanwhile, Russell has turned on the jets on the main straight at the start of the final lap to take seventh-place from Piastri but he just couldn’t overhaul Alonso for sixth. Tsunoda finishes tenth and amongst the points in his home grand prix!
Key events
The Dutch and Australia anthem ring out at Suzuka. We head the Spanish and Italian anthems in Melbourne but I don’t imagine too many F1 fans have forgotten what the pair sounds like.
Race winner Max Verstappen speaks.
“It was very nice, the critical bit was the start – to stay ahead. And after that, the car got better and better for me throughout the race. Pit stops went well, strategy went well, couldn’t really have gone better.
“The last race was a little hiccup but happy to be back here and back on top. It’s fantastic to win here!”
How they finished at the Suzuka Circuit
1. Max Verstappen (26pts)
2. Sergio Perez (18)
3. Carlos Sainz (15)
4. Charles Leclerc (12)
5. Lando Norris (10)
6. Fernando Alonso (8)
7. George Russell (6)
8. Oscar Piastri (4)
9. Lewis Hamilton (2)
10. Yuki Tsunoda (1)
11. Nico Hulkenberg
12. Lance Stroll
13. Kevin Magnussen
14. Valtteri Bottas
15. Esteban Ocon
16. Pierre Gasly
17. Logan Sargeant
DNF – Zhoy Guanyu, Daniel Ricciardo, Alexander Albon
Carlos Sainz has started three races this season and been on the podium in all three, including a win in Melbourne. And he still doesn’t have a job for next season!
“I had a good race so I’m very happy,” he said. “It was quite tough out there with the degradation, but the clouds came and the degradation got easier so I thought the one-stop might be better.
“I had to overtake today and overtaking isn’t easy, it was tough out there. I knew I needed a very big delta to approach Lando and Charles and in the end we managed it, and I could get that podium.”
Max Verstappen wins the Japanese Grand Prix!
The favourite justifies the expecations as he goes coast-to-coast in the Japanese grand prix for the third striaght year, with his teammate Perez coming through behind him to make it a one-two Red Bull finish – the third of the season.
Sainz comes through in third, followed by Leclerc for a Ferrari three-four. Norris holds on for fifth. Meanwhile, Russell has turned on the jets on the main straight at the start of the final lap to take seventh-place from Piastri but he just couldn’t overhaul Alonso for sixth. Tsunoda finishes tenth and amongst the points in his home grand prix!
Lap 52/53: Heading into the final lap Verstappen is streets ahead, more than 13 seconds clear of second placed Perez. He then has a large gap to the Ferraris. We’re going to have a Red Bull one-two and a Ferrari three-four.
Lap 51/53: So Alonso in sixth, with just over a one second gap over seventh-placed Piastri. There’s then less than a one second gap to eighth-placed Russell. Oh, and with the freshest tyres of all, Hamilton is closing the gap from ninth, it now around two seconds.
Lap 50/53: Russell attempts an audacious move to get past Piastri, with his move down the inside seeing Piastri going off the track after a slight bump. No positions are changed and stewards are examining the incident — albeit the coverage sees it as more good racing than malicious. Agreed.
Lap 49/53: Tsunoda remains in tenth place, looking like a good bet to take points in his home GP.
Lap 48/53: Russell has now closed the gap on seventh-placed Piastri to less than a second. It’s tight there, Alonso in sixth, Piastri seventh, and Russell eighth.
Lap 47/53: Stroll has been maing some gains and now moves into 11th after going past the both Haas cars. Russell has been closing the gap on Alonso and Piastri, who remain in a struggle for sixth.
Lap 46/53: Sainz takes advantage of the DRS and moves past the outside of Leclerc heading into turn one, Sainz now on track for a 20th career podium.
Lap 45/53: Verstappen has an eleven second lead on Perez, followed by the battle between the Ferraris for third. Norris is in fifth, then Alonso is 13 seconds back and coming under seige for his sixth place position by Piastri. Russell and Hamilton’s Mercedes follow, with Tsunoda follows in tenth.
Lap 44/53: Sainz does get ahead of Norris and now he and Leclerc can do battle for third — they’re free to race, no orders coming from the Ferrari garage.
Lap 43/53: A big lock up from Norris puts him heavily under the pump from Sainz. With ten laps to go, the Red Bulls lead and the Ferraris are doing their bit to take third and fourth.
Lap 42/53: There’s a yellow flag in sector two because Sargeant has gone off the track. The American has now fallen to the bottom of the race standings.
Lap 41/53: Verstappen leads Perez with what is now over a nine second gap. Six and half seconds is then the gap between Perez and Leclerc, followed by Norris, Sainz, Alonso, Piastri, Rusell, Hamilton, and Tsunoda.
Lap 40/53: Hoping that the battle between Alonso and Piastri will slow them down a bit, Hamilton pits for a set of medium tyres. Any thoughts of a one-stopper from either Mercedes are now just a memory.
Lap 39/53: Hamilton is currently sitting in sixth but he’s being overhauled at a rapid, rapid rate by Alonso and Pastri, who continue to do battle for seventh place.
Lap 38/53: Russell pits again for a set of medium tyres just after Sainz blasts past his teammate Hamilton.
Verstappen leads with an eight second buffer to Perez, followed by Leclerc, Norris, Sainz, Hamilton, Alonso, Piastri, Russell, Tsunoda.
Lap 37/53: Sainz pits, emerging if seventh place, a second behind Hamilton. The youngest driver on the grid Piastri is all over the back of the grid’s oldest driver in Alonso, looking to move into eigth.
Lap 36/53: Perez blasts past Leclerc on the home straight, putting Red Bull in a very commanding position to finish one-two in Japan.
Lap 35/53: Verstappen pits without incident, emerging five seconds back of new leader Sainz but seven seconds clear of Leclerc in third. The call from the Ferrari garage is that they want Sainz to stay out there a bit longer.
Lap 34/53: Perez and Alonso both pit, the former emerging back out behind Norris but in front of the Mercedes. Alonso is back out behind Russell and Hamilton but in front of Piastri,
Lap 33/53: Piastri is the first of the top five to head back in for his second-stop, emerging 12 seconds behind Russell and Hamilton. Tsunoda has gone past Hulkenberg and into the points of his home GP.
Lap 32/53: Magnussen and Bottas continue to battle for 13th, with Tsunoda doing a good job of keeping Stroll at bay for 11th.
Lap 31/53: Magnussen and Bottas are doing battle for 13th at the back of the pack. It’s a 20 second gap between second-place Perez and sixth-placed Leclerc.
Lap 30/53: Verstappen leads from Perez, followed by Sainz, ALonso, Piastri, all on medium tyres. Then come the hards of Leclerc, Norris, Ruseel, Hamilton, and Hulkenberg.
Leclerc gets on the radio and ask who in front of him doesn’t need to stop once again. The response is a simple one: everyone.
Lap 29/53: The top five will all need to pit once more before this race is out but the pack behind them can probably get through to the end as is. Looks like we’re set for a tight, packed run home… at least for every position behind Verstappen.
Lap 28/53: A DRS assisted Norris blasts past Russell with an audacious move down the outside. Verstappen leads from Perez, Sainz, Alonso, Piastri, Leclerc, Norris, Russell, Hamilton, and Hulkenberg.
Lap 27/53: Leclerc comes out of the pits just in front of Russell but the same can’t be said of Norris, who finds himself behind the Mercedes. Russell looking like he’s having much more luck with a one-stopper than Hamilton, back in ninth, is.
Lap 26/53: After doing such an incredible job of managing his tyres, Leclerc runs wide and is overtaken by Perez and now finds Norris right up the back of him.
Come the end of the lap, both the Ferrari and the McLaren pit.
Lap 25/53: Leclerc continues to nurse his tyres magnificently, preventing Perez from getting past him and taking second place off him. Verstappen is once again streaking away in the lead but the Ferrari will only need to pit once more.
Lap 24/53: Hamilton finally pits, with Leclerc now the lone remaining leader yet to make his way through pit lane since the race re-start. The stewards have noted a potential pit lane infringement on Stroll.
Lap 23/53: Perez gets past Norris and into fourth. Russell is the first of the Mercedes to put and emerges ahead of Magnussen — can he now get through 30 more laps without coming in again? Hamilton remains out there.
Lap 22/53: Alonso is the latest to breeze past Hamilton on his old tyres and, not good for Mercedes, the broadcast is openly pontificating that it’s too late now to change their strategy even if Hamilton wants them to. Norris and Perez are in a fierce battle for third, with the McLaren just able to hold off the Red Bull for now.
Lap 21/53: Verstappen’s fresh tyres prove to much for Leclerc and he blows past him to re-take the lead. Sainz has now gone past Russell, while Hamilton is on the radio demanding that his team change their strategy.
Lap 20/53: Leclerc is yet to pit on his mediums but stays out there, his tyres are now 19 laps old. He’s coming under significant pressure from Verstappen.
Lap 19/53: Sainz is all over the back of Hamilton and gets past him. The Mercedes are on a one-stop strategy it looks like but can they keep the cars out there long enough, with enough pace, to make it work?
Lap 18/53: Verstappen, Norris, and Perez have both gone past Russell, with Leclerc, still yet to pit, still leading the race.
Lap 17/53: After going back Sainz, Perez gets down the inside of Hamilton and moves into fifth place.
Lap 16/53: Verstappen pits and emerges back in third place. Leclerc leads from Russell, while Norris was able to pull of a much-needed overtake of Hamilton for fourth.
Lap 15/53: Sainz and Perez have both pitted. Norris, having stopped earlier, has gone ahead of both. Vertappen leads from Leclerc, both yet to pit, followed by Russell and Hamilton, both yet to pit as well but likely going longer on their hard tyres.
Lap 14/53: Red Bull retains control of first and second, with Verstappen leading Perez. It’s then Ferrari in third and fourth, Sainz out in front of Leclerc. None have pitted yet.
Guanyu has been forced to retire with mechanical problems.
Lap 13/53: Hamilton and Russell are engaged in a bit of a battle for sixth, with the latter now having overtaken the former for sixth. Alonso pits and emerges behind Norris but in front of Magnussen and Piastri.
Lap 12/53: Norris is the first of the leading back to pit at the end of lap 11 and he re-emerges in tenth. Ferrari don’t blink, with both Sainz and Leclerc staying out there. His teammate Piastri then heads into the pits at the end of lap 12.
Lap 11/53: Verstappen leads, followed by Perez, Norris, and Sainz. Alonso is in fifth with Piastri behind him, trailled by Leclerc, Hamilton, and Russell. Stroll rounds out the top ten.
Lap 10/53: On their hard tyres, Hamilton and Russell will be hoping that the drivers ahead of them are forced to pit soon, with the former getting on the radio to ask about the tyre degradation happening to those on the mediums.
Lap 9/53: Alonso is the only driver in the top ten still on the softs but there’s more than a three second gap between him and the driver ahead of him in Sainz.
Lap 8/53: Sainz is on the radio saying that he’s struggling a bit. Verstappen, Perez, Norris, Sainz, Alonso, Piastri, Leclrec, Hamilton, Russell, Stroll. The battle between Piastri and Leclerc is tight, less than a second separating them.
Lap 7/53: It’s now more than two seconds between Verstappen and Perez.
Bottas has also pitted now, while Tsunoda comes in as well.
6/53: Norris has begun the process of asking questions of Perez after the Red Bull inadvertently understeered off the track.
Hulkenberg has also pitted and re-emerges at the back of the pack.
5/53: Verstappen has now opened up more than a second gap on Perez. Norris is third, followed by Sainz, Alonso, Piastri, Leclerc, Hamilton, Russell is back in ninth, and Tsunoda.
It was an awful re-start for Hulkenberg, with replays showing that he lost five or six places after a very slow start.
4/53: Mercifully, nobody else has come a cropper since the re-start and Tsunodo has already gained a place, taking advantage of Russell’s new hard tyres to overhaul him for nine.