INDIA in F1

Tag: Japanese GP

  • Max Verstappen holds off McLarens to take first win of 2025 in Japan: F1

    Max Verstappen holds off McLarens to take first win of 2025 in Japan: F1

    Suzuka (Japan), 6 April 2025: Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen held off the McLaren of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, to take his first win of 2025 at Suzuka and become the first driver to take four consecutive Japanese Grand Prix victories beating Michael Schumacher’s record.

    After taking the lead from pole, Verstappen managed a slim gap to the hard-charging McLarens across the first stint. And after shrugging off a pit exit challenge from Norris when they made their sole pit stops on the same lap, the defending champion closed out his first win since Qatar last year in style, managing his tyres and his pace to cross the line with 1.4 seconds in hand over Norris, with Piastri another six tenths back in third. 

    “It was tough, just pushing very hard – especially on the second stint,” said Verstappen afterwards. “The two McLarens were pushing me very hard, and it was a lot of fun out there. Not easy, of course, to manage the tyres, but I’m incredibly happy. It started off quite tough this weekend, but we didn’t give up. We kept improving the car and today it was in its best form. And of course, starting on pole, that really made it possible to win the race.”

    After taking the lead ahead of Norris at the start, Verstappen set about trying to build a gap back to the McLarens, and despite complaining of poor upshifts, by lap five he was 1.4 second clear of Norris, with Piastri almost a second further back.

    As the opening stint headed towards the pit window Piastri was the first of the leaders to blink, and at the end of lap 20 the Australian dived into the pit lane for a set of Hard tyres. That prompted Red Bull to pit Verstappen at the end of the following tour and McLaren responded by pitting Norris on the same lap. 

    McLaren were quicker to fit a set of Hard tyres to Norris’ car and as Verstappen reached the end of the pity lane Norris pulled out into the working lane almost alongside the Dutchman. Verstappen held his line in the fast lane and though Norris protest that he had been forced onto the grass at the side of the pit exit, Race Control ruled that there was nothing to investigate, and Verstappen held the lead on the road. 

    With the pit stops out of the way, Verstappen was now 1.4s clear of Norris, with Piastri another two seconds further back in third. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc held fourth place, five seconds off the lead with Mercedes George Russell and Kimi Antonelli in fifth and sixth places. 

    With 20 laps remaining Verstappen was given free rein to push but he couldn’t shake the McLarens, who continued to exert maximum pressure. Verstappen, though, was flawless and the champion delivered a perfect closing third of race to take his first win since last year’s race in Qatar and the 64th of his career. 

    Behind the top three, Leclerc was fourth ahead of Russell, who got to within 1.3 of the Ferrari in the closing stages but couldn’t quite put pressure on the Monegasque driver. Mercedes rookie Antonelli finished sixth while Hamilton took seventh after racing on a Hard-Medium strategy in opposition to the bulk of the field. Isack Hadjar took an impressive eighth place and his first F1 points for the Racing Bulls ahead of Williams’ Alex Albon and the final point went to Haas’ Ollie Bearman. 

    2025 FIA Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull/Honda RBPT 53 1:22’06.983 
    2 Lando Norris McLaren/Mercedes 53 1:22’08.406 1.423
    3 Oscar Piastri McLaren/Mercedes 53 1:22’09.112 2.129
    4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 53 1:22’23.080 16.097
    5 George Russell Mercedes 53 1:22’24.345 17.362
    6 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 53 1:22’25.654 18.671
    7 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari 53 1:22’36.165 29.182
    8 Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 53 1:22’44.117 37.134
    9 Alexander Albon Williams/Mercedes 53 1:22’47.350 40.367
    10 Oliver Bearman Haas/Ferrari 53 1:23’01.512 54.529
    11 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin/Mercedes 53 1:23’04.316 57.333
    12 Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull/Honda RBPT 53 1:23’05.384 58.401
    13 Pierre Gasly Alpine/Renault 53 1:23’09.105 1’02.122
    14 Carlos Sainz Williams/Mercedes 53 1:23’21.112 1’14.129
    15 Jack Doohan Alpine/Renault 53 1:23’28.297 1’21.314
    16 Nico Hülkenberg Sauber/Ferrari 53 1:23’28.940 1’21.957
    17 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls/Honda RBPT 53 1:23’29.717 1’22.734
    18 Esteban Ocon Haas/Ferrari 53 1:23’30.421 1’23.438
    19 Gabriel Bortoleto Sauber/Ferrari 53 1:23’30.880 1’23.897
    20 Lance Stroll Aston Martin/Mercedes 52 1:22’19.912 1 lap /12.929

  • Max Verstappen powers Red Bull to Constructors’ title

    Max Verstappen powers Red Bull to Constructors’ title

    Suzuka, 24 Sept. 2023: Max Verstappen powered to a dominant Japanese Grand Prix win at Suzuka to seal a sixth Formula 1 Constructors’ Championship title win for Red Bull Racing and to move one step closer to his third Drivers’ title in a row. McLaren’s Lando Norris finished second ahead of team-mate Oscar Piastri, while Sergio Pérez in the other Red Bull was forced to retire from the race after two early collisions. 

    “Unbelievable guys, you deserve that,” Verstappen told his team over the radio after crossing the line. “You can all be very proud, here at the track and back at the factory. You have built a rocket ship of car, well done!” 

    Verstappen’s win puts him on 400 points and just a handful of points away from a third title. The Dutchman is now 177 ahead of the non-scoring Pérez with a maximum 180 points still on the table from the remaining six rounds. The Dutchman is now almost certain to take the crown at the next race in Qatar. 

    Starting from pole in Suzuka, Verstappen seized the lead of the line. And though his progress was briefly slowed by an early Safety Car, once he had calmly navigated the re-start, the championship leader simply drove away from the rest of the field to eventually beat Norris to the flag by 19.3 seconds.

    When the lights went out for the start, Verstappen got away well and despite pressure from Piastri to his right, the Dutchman placed his car well to block the McLaren. That left Piastri vulnerable, and spotting the opportunity, Norris powered through to steal P2 from his team-mate. 

    Behind the top three, Pérez got a poor start from fifth place on the grid and on the approach to Turn 1 he was squeezed by the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. Forced left, Pérez made contact with Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton and dropped back to seventh as Sainz slipped through to P5 and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso roared up the inside from 10th to sixth. 

    Further back again, there was another incident, with Alfa Romeo’s Zhou Guanyu moving into the path of Williams’ Alex Albon. The Williams driver ran over the rear left of the Alfa Romeo and while both managed to keep going, substantial amounts of debris were left on track and the Safety Car was deployed.

    Behind the Safety Car Pérez  pitted at the end of lap 2 for a new nose cone. But the Mexican driver’s race unravelled further there as he rejoined incorrectly behind the Safety Car and was handed a five-second time penalty. It would only get worse for the Red Bull driver.  

    When the Safety Car left the track Verstappen controlled the re-start well to hold his lead ahead of Norris and Piastri, with Leclerc in fourth ahead of Sainz and Alonso. 

    Pérez was soon on the march and over the following half dozen laps he carved his way from 18th place to 12th, behind the Haas of Kevin Magnussen. However, on lap 13, the Red Bull driver was sent plummeting down the order again when an attempt to pass the Dane at the hairpin went wrong. “I’ve got front wing damage again,” he lamented after locking up and sliding into the side of the Haas. 

    Pérez returned to the pit lane again, serving his penalty and taking on a new nose cone. But almost as soon as he was back on track he reported that his car “did not feel right” and he returned to the pit lane and the garage. He was also handed a second penalty for causing the collision with Magnussen. 

    At the front, the leaders began to pit. Piastri sparked the stops, boxing under the VSC deployed for the Pérez and attempting to undercut the drivers ahead. Verstappen then made his first stop, taking on another set of Medium tyres and Leclerc, Norris and Sainz all followed soon after. Verstappen soon returned to the lead, ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell, who had yet to stop, and Piastri, who had managed to undercut Norris thanks to his stop under the VSC. 

    At the front Verstappen was striding away from the chasing pack and at half distance the Red Bull driver was 12 seconds ahead of Piastri. McLaren were on the radio to the Australian, however, telling him that Norris was running faster and on lap 27 Piastri backed off the let his team-mate through to P2. 

    Leclerc made his second stop, from fifth, at the end of lap 35, quickly followed by sixth-placed Hamilton, and both driver took on Hard tyres. Third-placed Piastri followed suit at the end of the next lap with Norris coming in a lap later and then at the end of lap 37 Max made is final stop of the racing, fitting a set of Hard tyres for the last 16 laps of the race. 

    Pérez, seeking to shake off his penalty in case it carried over to Qatar went back out on lap 40 before steering back to the garage a lap later.

    Ahead, Verstappen led Norris by more than 15 seconds, with Piastri in third and Leclerc fourth. And over the final 15 dozen laps the gap only grew and when he eventually crossed the line to take his 13th win of the season and to secure the 2023 Constructors’ World Championship title for the Team he was over 19 seconds clear of Norris, with Piastri a further 17 seconds back in third. 

    Fourth place went to Leclerc with Hamilton in fifth ahead of Sainz. Russell, who made a single pit stop during the race, came home in seventh place, with Alonso in eighth ahead of the Alpine of Esteban Ocon, and the final point on offer went to Pierre Gasly in the second Alpine. 

    2013 FIA Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix – Race 
    1 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 53 1:30’58.421 
    2 Lando Norris McLaren 53 1:31’17.808 19.387
    3 Oscar Piastri McLaren 53 1:31’34.915 36.494
    4 Charles Leclerc Ferrari 53 1:31’42.419 43.998
    5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 53 1:31’47.797 49.376
    6 Carlos Sainz Ferrari 53 1:31’48.642 50.221
    7 George Russell Mercedes 53 1:31’56.080 57.659
    8 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 53 1:32’13.146 1’14.725
    9 Esteban Ocon Alpine 53 1:32’18.099 1’19.678
    10 Pierre Gasly Alpine 53 1:32’21.576 1’23.155
    11 Liam Lawson AlphaTauri 52 1:31’01.510 1 lap /3.089
    12 Yuki Tsunoda AlphaTauri 52 1:31’02.395 1 lap /3.974
    13 Zhou Guanyu Alfa Romeo 52 1:31’04.761 1 lap /6.340
    14 Nico Hülkenberg Haas 52 1:31’08.019 1 lap /9.598
    15 Kevin Magnussen Haas 52 1:31’27.991 1 lap /29.570
         Alexander Albon Williams 26 48’31.077 Retirement
         Logan Sargeant Williams 22 42’29.573 Accident damage
         Lance Stroll Aston Martin 20 37’53.303 Wing
         Sergio Pérez Red Bull Racing 15 1:13’07.893 Retirement
         Valtteri Bottas Alfa Romeo 7 17’03.533 Accident damage

  • Hamilton takes pole; Vettel to start on P9: Japanese GP

    Hamilton takes pole; Vettel to start on P9: Japanese GP

    Hamilton (centre) takes pole at Suzuka on Saturday. An FIA image

    Suzuka, 6 Oct 2018: Mercedes Lewis Hamilton took his eighth pole position of the season at Suzuka and the 80th of his career, while title rival Sebastian Vettel faces a ninth-place race start after a troubled final segment of qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, the 17th round of the FIA Formula One World Championship here on Sunday.

    Valtteri Bottas will start alongside Hamilton in the second Mercedes, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen with start at the front of row three, alongside the second Ferrari of Kimi Räikkönen.

    Vettel established an early benchmark in Q1 with a lap of 1:29.049, more than half a second clear of Ferrari team-mate Kimi Räikkönen. Hamilton soon bypassed Vettel to take P1, however, with a lap of 1:28.702 that left him 0.347 ahead of the Ferrari man.

    Vettel then had a spin at the hairpin, but there was worse to come for Marcus Ericsson who lost control of his Sauber in Turn 7 and hit the barriers hard. Ericsson was soon out of his car but the red flags were immediately shown.

    In the final runs of Q1, Toro Rosso’s Pierre Gasly made the biggest jump, climbing from P15 to P10 at the end of the session. It was a necessary improvement, as Williams’ Lance Stroll put in a good final lap to jump to 15th place with a time well clear of Gasly’s best time from before the final laps.

    Stroll’s escape from the drop zone meant that Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg was eliminated in P16 ahead of Williams’ Sergey Sirotkin, the McLarens of Fernando Alonso and Stoffel Vandoorne and the unfortunate Ericsson.

    In Q2, Mercedes both Hamilton and Bottas out on soft tyres, and this time it was Bottas who set the pace, the Finn topping the timesheet at the end of the session with a lap of 1:27.987, three hundredths of a second ahead of Hamilton.

    Further back there was trouble for Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo. The Australian began his opening run but experienced a power loss and quickly returned to the pits.

    With the covers going back on his car in the final minutes of the session, it looked like his team had solved the issue, but rain was already falling on track and as conditions worsened Ricciardo’s hopes of getting in a lap dwindled. He was ruled out in P15 with no time on the board in Q2.

    Also ruled out at the end of Q2 were 11th-placed Leclerc, Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, Renault’s Carlos Sainz and Stroll.

    In Q3 it was Ferrari’s turn to encounter trouble. Rain was expected, but it didn’t arrive soon enough for the Italian and they sent Räikkönen and Vettel out on intermediate tyres at the start of the session. Both were forced to lap and pit for slick tyres, putting them out of sequence to the other front runners.

    Hamilton staked a claim to pole position with a time of 1:27.760, more than two tenths ahead of Bottas, while Verstappen slotted into third place on the timesheet. Räikkönen managed to sneak in a lap to take fourth place, but Vettel made a mistake on his opening lap and was forced to try again. By the time he was ready for a hot lap rain was falling and his chance was gone. He ended the session in P9 between the Force Indias of Esteban Ocon and Sergio Perez.

    With the conditions growing steadily worse, the session was effectively over and after the clock had counted down to the flag, Hamilton duly took his 80th career pole position ahead of Bottas, Verstappen and Räikkönen. Grosjean was fifth for Haas, while Brendon Hartley scored his best ever qualifying result with sixth place, just ahead of Toro Rosso team-mate Gasly.

    2018 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix – Qualifying
    1 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:27.760
    2 Valtteri Bottas Mercedes 1:28.059 0.299
    3 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing 1:29.057 1.297
    4 Kimi Räikkönen Ferrari 1:29.521 1.761
    5 Romain Grosjean Haas 1:29.761 2.001
    6 Brendon Hartley Toro Rosso 1:30.023 2.263
    7 Pierre Gasly Toro Rosso 1:30.093 2.333
    8 Esteban Ocon Racing Point Force India 1:30.126 2.366
    9 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:32.192 4.432
    10 Sergio Perez Racing Point Force India 1:37.229 9.469
    11 Charles Leclerc Sauber 1:29.864 2.104
    12 Kevin Magnussen Haas 1:30.226 2.466
    13 Carlos Sainz Renault 1:30.490 2.730
    14 Lance Stroll Williams 1:30.714 2.954
    15 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull Racing
    16 Nico Hulkenberg Renault 1:30.361 2.601
    17 Sergey Sirotkin Williams 1:30.372 2.612
    18 Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:30.573 2.813
    19 Stoffel Vandoorne McLaren 1:31.041 3.281
    20 Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:31.213 3.453.