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The Suzuka weekend has unfolded unusually, with FP2 effectively being washed out by drizzle, which meant the teams spent most of FP3 on Saturday morning concentrating on long-run data gathering, rather than the typical qualifying simulation efforts.In these, Verstappen trailed his team-mate Sergio Perez by an average of 0.122 seconds each time, while both were trumped by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc …Keep reading
Leclerc, renowned for his one-lap pace, was only eighth fastest as he lapped 0.589 seconds slower than polesitter Max Verstappen while outgoing Scuderia team-mate Carlos Sainz ranked fourth.But the Monegasque was at a loss to explain the disappointing performance on his side of the garage, implying that it was just a freak episode that only happens “once in a season” as the fundamentals of the …Keep reading
The Spaniard ended Q1 second fastest but as the pace sharpened he dropped to fifth place in both Q2 and Q3, but he still felt the pace jump from Aston’s car updates were greater than predicted.Alonso ran the previous AMR24 car package during Friday practice at Suzuka, with team-mate Lance Stroll using the upgrades to provide comparison running, before both drivers switched to the upgrades – which …Keep reading
After every F1 qualifying session, Motorsport.com each team’s qualifying record in terms of team-mate duels.This record is based exclusively on qualifying results so that grid penalties don’t alter the statistics.When a driver can’t put in a representative lap time due to a technical issue or an incident, this will be mentioned in the table.Read Also: Formula 1F1 Japanese GP: Verstappen …Keep reading
The Red Bull drivers were amongst just a handful of drivers to gain time on the second runs in Q3, where Ferrari’s challenge failed to materialise and the Mercedes drivers ended up behind Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.Verstappen led the way on a 1m28.240s on the first Q3 fliers, where Norris was his closest challenger after producing a then session-best opening sector.But he could not replicate …Keep reading
Verstappen will start ahead of team-mate Sergio Perez and McLaren’s Lando Norris after the one-hour qualifying session, which is split into three segments with five cars each being knocked out in Q1 and Q2 before the top-10 shootout of Q3. Japanese Grand Prix grid: Verstappen on pole from PerezRead Also: Formula 1F1 Japanese GP: Verstappen on pole as Red Bull locks front …Keep reading
After the initial sighter runs had been completed, most teams sent their drivers out for lengthy stints on higher fuel to see how they stacked up on the tricky tyre management task at this demanding layout with its abrasive track surface.Of the typical frontrunners, the two leading teams in that class so far this season – Red Bull and Ferrari – produced mirrored run plans that paint a …Keep reading
The last race at the Shanghai circuit was held in 2019, before COVID-19 triggered an extended absence from the country.Since then, the F1 technical regulations have changed substantially, including a switch to 18-inch tyres.Inevitably the track surface will also have altered over the intervening years, but unusually Pirelli has not been able to send engineers to assess it in advance, which would …Keep reading
Under brighter and slightly warmer conditions compared to Friday, Verstappen lined up first at the end of the pitlane and led off on a long first stint on the mediums, which meant he set the first place benchmark at 1m30.265s, but was soon supplanted by the soft-shod Hamilton.The Mercedes driver’s 1m30.065s first flier remained the top spot throughout the first third of the one-hour session …Keep reading
Even though Waters got knocked out of the race after 176 of 200 laps, that didn’t negatively affect his experience.“I had so much fun tonight and all day today. It is totally different racing from what I usually do, and I just wanted to learn,” he said. “I learned so much.“There at the end, I just had nowhere to go and knocked the radiator out of it. It is a shame, but I was having fun …Keep reading