suzuka

Pain from his seatbelts almost put Racing Bulls Formula 1 driver Isack Hadjar out in Q1 for the Japanese Grand Prix, before completing an “unbelievable” lap having overcome the discomfort.

Hadjar was heard over the radio complaining about an unspecified cockpit issue in FP3, and had reported in the first part of qualifying that the problem had reoccurred as he attempted to break into Q2.

It emerged that the French driver’s seatbelts were fastened too tight, but he was unable to relieve the pain in Q1 as he didn’t have time to get out of the car to reposition the belts. This was fixed in the interim, but only after he’d cleared the first qualifying hurdle.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Hadjar stated that he had to “pull through” the pain and was delighted with his effort to get into Q2 – which later begat a second F1 Q3 appearance and seventh on the grid for the Japanese GP.

“It was a nightmare,” Hadjar said. “I just pulled through; honestly, I’m really proud of me, the lap I did in Q1 with what I had, unbelievable.

“I realised straight in T3. I was like ‘OK, this is not going well’, and I nearly crashed actually. But I’m OK. [Between sessions] I had to jump out, and jump back in.”

Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

When speaking to media, including Motorsport.com, Hadjar added: “In Q1, of course you don’t have time to get to jump back out, so I had to deal with it and pull through Q2. But when I came back in the car, put the belts back on, it was all good. It was just pain.”

Hadjar ultimately qualified in seventh, matching his result from the Chinese Grand Prix to outqualify new team-mate Liam Lawson and new Red Bull recruit Yuki Tsunoda.

The 2024 F2 title runner-up explained that he slowly started getting braver through the session, and felt confident enough in the car by Q3 to take more risks with his driving – which ultimately put him above Lewis Hamilton on the grid.

Read Also:

“I was still not happy with everything, every lap we made, we made a nice improvement with the balance, with the settings, and honestly the car just came alive, that final lap,” Hadjar said to Sky Sports F1. “It was fantastic, to be honest; I couldn’t have gotten much faster.

“You feel something different when you know it’s that final lap of Q3. You’re like, ‘I’m just gonna add a tiny bit more everywhere’ and you’re just hoping for it to stick.

“The amount of focus it takes is a lot, but yeah, I was at 100% and I was not previously, so I just managed to be brave enough to make an extra step.”

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Isack Hadjar

Racing Bulls

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

FIA grass fire concerns ease with rain forecast at F1 Japanese Grand Prix

Lengthy rain showers have been forecast for Suzuka overnight on Saturday and into Sunday, with the expected downpours set to halt the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix grass fires.

Five separate incidents of scorched turf have delayed track action across the weekend so far, with two red flags in FP2, two in FP3 and another during Q2 as the FIA and race organisers grappled with finding a solution.

Investigations into the cause of the incidents are ongoing with the most plausible explanation being sparks coming off the cars’ titanium skid blocks and landing on the straw-like grass, with strong winds also playing a part.

Having cut some sections of grass as short as possible and watered other areas on Friday evening, the FIA had hoped to eradicate any further instances.

“While we continue to look into the fires that occurred during FP2, our focus before tomorrow will be on taking pre-emptive measures,” a statement released on Friday from the governing body read.

“The grass has been cut as short as possible, and loose, dried grass has been removed from affected areas.

“Prior to tomorrow’s sessions, the grass will be dampened, and specific response teams will be stationed around the track.”

A fire fighter sprays the grass at the side of the track to dampen it after fires during final practice

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

However, with weather conditions similar on Saturday, the grass continued to catch fire and led to further farcical delays to running.

Now it seems as though organisers will be looking to the skies for their solution, with constant rain expected throughout Saturday night and potentially continuing during Sunday.

If there is ample rainfall, the issue is much less likely to return. The FIA would however also be ready to water the danger areas again.

Some reports claimed a drastic measure could see the grass burned deliberately to prevent the issue, but Autosport understands that is not an option on the table.

Max Verstappen took pole position for Sunday’s race and, when asked about the fires by Autosport, he too suggested Mother Nature could help out.

“It will rain overnight,” he said. “That will help wet the ground a little bit. I guess the grass has been very dry and with the sparks coming off the cars it can ignite the grass with a bit of wind.”

In this article

Mark Mann-Bryans

Formula 1

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Forecast rain easing FIA concerns over grass fires at F1 Japanese Grand Prix

Lengthy rain showers have been forecast for Suzuka overnight on Saturday and into Sunday, with the expected downpours set to halt the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix grass fires.

Five separate incidents of scorched turf have delayed track action across the weekend so far, with two red flags in FP2, two in FP3 and another during Q2 as the FIA and race organisers grappled with finding a solution.

Investigations into the cause of the incidents are ongoing with the most plausible explanation being sparks coming off the cars’ titanium skid blocks and landing on the straw-like grass, with strong winds also playing a part.

Having cut some sections of grass as short as possible and watering other areas on Friday evening, the FIA had hoped to eradicate any further instances.

“While we continue to look into the fires that occurred during FP2, our focus before tomorrow will be on taking pre-emptive measures,” a statement released on Friday from the governing body read.

“The grass has been cut as short as possible, and loose, dried grass has been removed from affected areas.

“Prior to tomorrow’s sessions, the grass will be dampened, and specific response teams will be stationed around the track.”

A fire fighter sprays the grass at the side of the track to dampen it after fires during final practice

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

However, with weather conditions similar on Saturday, the grass continued to catch flame and led to further farcical delays to running.

Now it seems as though organisers will be looking to the sky for their solution, with constant rain expected throughout Saturday night and potentially continuing during Sunday.

If there is ample rainfall, the issue is much less likely to return, while the FIA would also be ready to water the danger areas again.

Some reports claimed a drastic measure could see the grass burned deliberately to prevent the issue, but Motorsport.com understands that is not an option on the table.

Max Verstappen took pole position for Sunday’s race and, when asked about the fires by Motorsport.com, he too suggested Mother Nature could help out.

“It will rain overnight,” he said. “That will help and wet the ground a little bit, I guess the grass has been very dry and with the sparks coming off the car it can ignite the grass with a bit of wind.”

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Mark Mann-Bryans

Formula 1

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Norris happy with car again as “small margin” costs him Japanese GP pole

Lando Norris insists he is much happier with his McLaren Formula 1 car than he was in China – despite being beaten to Japanese Grand Prix pole by Max Verstappen.

The current championship leader bemoaned small margins for missing out on pole by 0.012 seconds at Suzuka as Verstappen surprisingly took the top spot ahead of both Norris and his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri.

Throughout the Chinese Grand Prix weekend a fortnight ago Norris spoke of how difficult he found the car to drive, with small errors costing him in both qualifying sessions and the sprint race in Shanghai.

Now he feels in a better position, despite having been pipped to pole by Verstappen. Norris was quickest in FP1 and FP3, while Piastri was top of the pile in second practice.

“I was pretty happy with my lap, honestly,” said Norris.

“I tried pushing a good amount more in Q3 run one and it didn’t work out, clearly. So I just had to kind of peg it back a lot.

“I was happy with the balance and happy with the car at the end. So I mean, the margin is so small… but just not enough for pole today.

“[I’m] much happier than China, yeah. I mean, the car’s a lot more back to my liking. I’ve got some front end in the car, and I’m much, much happier with that.

Lando Norris, McLaren

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

“I’ve been feeling confident all weekend. If it was a sprint race, I feel like I’d be much further ahead.

“But everyone’s good enough that, by the time you get to qualifying, they kind of catch up a bit. I’ve been feeling good, but the car’s been feeling good from the off as well.

“We’ve been chipping away, and between both of us, we’ve been quickest in every session bar this one. So it’s a little frustrating, but I think the corners I still struggle with and the corners I’m still not happiest with are the corners [where] I still just don’t have the front-end and I don’t have the grip in the car when I need it from the front.

“So it’s clear what suits me, what doesn’t, or just what allows me to be quick and what doesn’t. China was one of those weaker tracks. [We have] come here and the car’s a lot better.”

Norris defeated Verstappen by less than a second to win the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, a race where downpours certainly added to the spectacle.

With rain forecast overnight at Suzuka and potential for showers on Sunday, Norris was not prepared to predict what might happen as he once again battles Verstappen off the line.

“No one knows what the weather’s going to be like tomorrow, so no point trying to think of too many things,” he said.

“I think we’ll do our homework tonight. It’s probably going to be a bit of a race like Melbourne, and that was an exciting race for everyone. But now I’ve got to try do some overtakes, we will see.

“The unknown of the weather is going to make it exciting and nerve-wracking for everyone and I’ve got to try and get past the man on my left [Verstappen].”

Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Photo by: Toshifumi Kitamura – AFP – Getty Images

Piastri, who won in China having taken his first-ever grand prix pole, will start on the second row after losing time during the fast first sector.

The Australian set the fastest times in sectors two and three but could not make up for the valuable moments lost at the start of his final flying lap and, in direct contrast to his team-mate, said he has had to work harder to find the McLaren’s sweet spot at Suzuka.

“It wasn’t my best sector one,” he conceded. “I think I lost a little bit of time compared to the first lap of Q3 and, when the gap is 0.040s from first to third, you think about it quite a bit.

“I’ve been pretty comfortable through qualifying – I think the first lap of Q3 was a good one.

“The second one was just a little bit off the mark in a couple of places but I had to dial myself in a bit more this weekend than I did last race, and it’s taken a bit longer to get there.

“I think looking at the margins and how I’ve performed, I’ve been pretty happy. [It’s] just those little margins which, when it is so tight, make all the difference, clearly.

“[Now] just see what the weather does. Obviously, the game plan is to try and finish two spots ahead of where I’m starting. But apart from that, we’ll see what we get tomorrow first.”

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Mark Mann-Bryans

Formula 1

Lando Norris

McLaren

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Sainz hit with Japanese GP grid drop for impeding Hamilton in qualifying

Williams driver Carlos Sainz has received a three-place grid penalty for Formula 1’s Japanese Grand Prix for impeding Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton in qualifying.

Arriving at high speed into Turn 1 for his final flying lap in Q2, Hamilton encountered Sainz in the middle of the road, having to abort his lap and take avoiding action into the runoff area.

Sainz said he had no warning that Hamilton, the driver who replaced him at Ferrari this season, was approaching fast and was caught by surprise.

The FIA’s race stewards sympathised with the Spaniard but, as it is the responsibility of the team to warn its drivers of traffic, it has handed him the standard three-place grid penalty.

That penalty drops Sainz from 12th to 15th on the grid, having narrowly missed the cut to make it into Q3.

“Car 55 [Sainz] was on an in-lap after having completed a push lap when Car 44 [Hamilton] was starting its push lap, and Car 44 had to move off track to avoid Car 55 in Turn 1,” the stewards wrote in their verdict.

“The driver of Car 55 stated that he did not have any warning from the team, of the approach of Car 44 on a push lap.

“He stated that he was caught completely by surprise and, because of the approach speed of Car 44, and the angle of his car, he could not see Car 44 in his mirrors.

Carlos Sainz, Williams

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

“However, notwithstanding the above, the team had ample warning that Car 44 was on an out-lap whilst Car 55 was on its push lap.

“Also, more than 8 seconds elapsed from when it was obvious Car 44 was not going into the pits, and hence was going to start a push lap, and when Car 55 could have taken appropriate action if the driver had been warned by the team.

“It is noted that the standard penalty guideline for this offence during qualifying, irrespective of whether it was the fault of the driver or the team, is a three grid position penalty, and therefore the stewards find that the standard penalty should be applied.”

Sainz’s team-mate Alex Albon did advance to Q3 to claim ninth for Williams as it fights Racing Bulls at the front of the midfield.

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Filip Cleeren

Formula 1

Carlos Sainz

Williams

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Sainz hit with Japanese GP grid drop for impeding Hamilton in qualifying

Williams driver Carlos Sainz has received a three-place grid penalty for Formula 1’s Japanese Grand Prix for impeding Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton in qualifying.

Arriving at high speed into Turn 1 for his final flying lap in Q2, Hamilton encountered Sainz in the middle of the road, having to abort his lap and take avoiding action into the runoff area.

Sainz said he had no warning that Hamilton, the driver who replaced him at Ferrari this season, was approaching fast and was caught by surprise. The FIA’s race stewards sympathised with the Spaniard, but as it is the responsibility of the team to warn its drivers of traffic, it has handed him the standard three-place grid penalty.

That penalty drops Sainz from 12th to 15th on the grid, having narrowly missed the cut to make it into Q3.

“Car 55 [Sainz] was on an in lap after having completed a push lap when Car 44 [Hamilton] was starting its push lap, and Car 44 had to move off track to avoid Car 55 in Turn 1,” the stewards wrote in their verdict.

“The driver of Car 55 stated that he did not have any warning from the team, of the approach of Car 44 on a push lap. He stated that he was caught completely by surprise and because of the approach speed of Car 44, and the angle of his car, he could not see Car 44 in his mirrors.

Carlos Sainz, Williams

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

“However, notwithstanding the above, the team had ample warning that Car 44 was on an out lap whilst Car 55 was on its push lap. Also, more than 8 seconds elapsed from when it was obvious Car 44 was not going into the pits, and hence was going to start a push lap, and when Car 55 could have taken appropriate action if the driver had been warned by the team.

“It is noted that the standard penalty guideline for this offence during Qualifying, irrespective of whether it was the fault of the driver or the team, is a 3 grid position penalty, and therefore the Stewards find that the standard penalty should be applied.”

Sainz’s team-mate Alex Albon did advance to Q3 to claim ninth on the grid for Williams as it fights Racing Bulls at the front of the midfield.

Read Also:

In this article

Filip Cleeren

Formula 1

Carlos Sainz

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Hadjar explains “nightmare” seatbelt pain in Japanese GP qualifying

Pain from his seatbelts almost cost Isack Hadjar a chance at making the second part of qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, but the Racing Bulls Formula 1 driver reckoned he put together an “unbelievable” lap to overcome it.

Hadjar was heard over the radio complaining about an unspecified cockpit issue in FP3, and had reported in the first part of qualifying that the problem had reoccurred as he attempted to break into Q2.

It emerged that the French driver’s seatbelts were fastened too tight, but he was unable to relieve the pain in Q1 as he didn’t have time to get out of the car to reposition the belts. This was fixed in the interim, but only after he’d cleared the first qualifying hurdle.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Hadjar stated that he had to “pull through” the pain and was delighted with his effort to get into Q2 – which later begat a second F1 Q3 appearance and seventh on the grid for the Japanese GP.

“It was a nightmare, man – honestly, it was,” Hadjar said. “I just pulled through; honestly, I’m really proud of me, like the lap I did in Q1 with what I had, unbelievable.

“I realised straight in T3. I was like ‘okay, this is not going well’, and I nearly crashed actually. But I’m okay. [Between sessions] I had to jump out, and jump back in.”

Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

When speaking to media, including Autosport, Hadjar added: “In Q1, of course you don’t have time to get to jump back out, so I had to deal with it and pull through Q2. But when I came back in the car, put the belts back on, it was all good. It was just pain.”

Hadjar ultimately qualified in seventh, matching his result from the Chinese Grand Prix to outqualify new team-mate Liam Lawson and new Red Bull recruit Yuki Tsunoda.

2024’s F2 title runner-up explained that he slowly started getting braver through the session, and felt confident enough in the car by Q3 to take more risks with his driving – which ultimately put him above Lewis Hamilton on the grid.

Read Also:

“I was still not happy with everything, every lap we made, we made a nice improvement with the balance, with the settings, and honestly the car just came alive, that final lap,” Hadjar said to Sky Sports F1. “It was fantastic, to be honest; I couldn’t have gotten much faster.

“You feel something different when you know it’s that final lap of Q3. You’re like, ‘I’m just gonna add a tiny bit more everywhere’ and you’re just hoping for it to stick.

“The amount of focus it takes is a lot, but yeah, I was at 100% and I was not previously, so I just managed to be brave enough to make an extra step.”

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Isack Hadjar

RB

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Hadjar explains “nightmare” seatbelt pain in Japanese GP qualifying

Pain from his seatbelts almost cost Isack Hadjar a chance at making the second part of qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix, but the Racing Bulls Formula 1 driver reckoned he put together an “unbelievable” lap to overcome it.

Hadjar was heard over the radio complaining about an unspecified cockpit issue in FP3, and had reported in the first part of qualifying that the problem had reoccurred as he attempted to break into Q2.

It emerged that the French driver’s seatbelts were fastened too tight, but he was unable to relieve the pain in Q1 as he didn’t have time to get out of the car to reposition the belts. This was fixed in the interim, but only after he’d cleared the first qualifying hurdle.

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Hadjar stated that he had to “pull through” the pain and was delighted with his effort to get into Q2 – which later begat a second F1 Q3 appearance and seventh on the grid for the Japanese GP.

“It was a nightmare, man – honestly, it was,” Hadjar said. “I just pulled through; honestly, I’m really proud of me, like the lap I did in Q1 with what I had, unbelievable.

“I realised straight in T3. I was like ‘okay, this is not going well’, and I nearly crashed actually. But I’m okay. [Between sessions] I had to jump out, and jump back in.”

Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images

When speaking to media, including Autosport, Hadjar added: “In Q1, of course you don’t have time to get to jump back out, so I had to deal with it and pull through Q2. But when I came back in the car, put the belts back on, it was all good. It was just pain.”

Hadjar ultimately qualified in seventh, matching his result from the Chinese Grand Prix to outqualify new team-mate Liam Lawson and new Red Bull recruit Yuki Tsunoda.

2024’s F2 title runner-up explained that he slowly started getting braver through the session, and felt confident enough in the car by Q3 to take more risks with his driving – which ultimately put him above Lewis Hamilton on the grid.

Read Also:

“I was still not happy with everything, every lap we made, we made a nice improvement with the balance, with the settings, and honestly the car just came alive, that final lap,” Hadjar said to Sky Sports F1. “It was fantastic, to be honest; I couldn’t have gotten much faster.

“You feel something different when you know it’s that final lap of Q3. You’re like, ‘I’m just gonna add a tiny bit more everywhere’ and you’re just hoping for it to stick.

“The amount of focus it takes is a lot, but yeah, I was at 100% and I was not previously, so I just managed to be brave enough to make an extra step.”

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Isack Hadjar

RB

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

F1 2025 qualifying head-to-head: Japanese GP

After every F1 qualifying session, Motorsport.com publishes each team’s qualifying record in terms of team-mate battles.

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.

McLaren

Oscar Piastri	2-2 (1-2 without sprints)	LANDO NORRIS
2 (+0.084s in Q3)	Australia	1
3	China (sprint)	6 (+0.464s in SQ3)
1	China	3 (+0.152s in Q2)
3 (+0.032s in Q3)	Japan	2

Ferrari

CHARLES LECLERC	2-2 (2-1 without sprints)	LEWIS HAMILTON
7	Australia	8 (+0.218s in Q3)
4 (+0.208s in SQ3)	China (sprint)	1
6 (+0.094s in Q3)	China	5
4	Japan	8 (+.0311s in Q3)

Red Bull

max verstappen	3-0 (2-0 without sprints)	liam lawson
3	Australia	18 (+1.076s in Q1)
2	China (sprint)	20 (+0.813s in SQ1)
4	China	20 (+0.750s in Q1)

max verstappen

3-0

(2-0 without sprints)

liam lawson

3

Australia

18

(+1.076s in Q1)

2

China (sprint)

20

(+0.813s in SQ1)

4

China

20

(+0.750s in Q1)

Mercedes

george russell	4-0 (3-0 without sprints)	andrea kimi antonelli
4	Australia	16 (+0.554s in Q1 – car damage)
5	China (sprint)	7 (+0.569s in SQ3)
2	China	8 (+0.380s in Q3)
5	Japan	6 (+0.237s in Q3)

Aston Martin

LANCE STROLL	1-3 (0-3 without sprints)	FERNANDO ALONSO
13 (+0.030s in Q2)	Australia	12
10	China (sprint)	11 (+0.073s in SQ2)
14 (+0.085s in Q2)	China	13
20 (+0.934s in Q1)	Japan	13

Alpine

PIERRE GASLY	3-1 (3-0 without sprints)	JACK DOOHAN
9	Australia	14 (+0.751s in Q2)
17 (+0.065s in SQ1)	China (sprint)	16
16	China	18 (+0.100s in Q1)
11	Japan	19 (+0.691s in Q)

Haas

ESTEBAN OCON	2-2 (2-1 without sprints)	OLIVER BEARMAN
19	Australia	– (no lap time – technical issue)
18 (+0.382s in SQ1)	China (sprint)	12
11	China	17 (+0.142s in Q1)
18	Japan	10 (+0.468s in Q1)

Racing Bulls

ISACK HADJAR	1-2 (1-1 without sprints)	YUKI TSUNODA
11 (+0.166s in Q2)	Australia	5
15 (no lap time)	China (sprint)	8
7	China	9 (+0.559s in Q3)

ISACK HADJAR

1-2

(1-1 without sprints)

YUKI TSUNODA

11

(+0.166s in Q2)

Australia

5

15

(no lap time)

China (sprint)

8

7

China

9

(+0.559s in Q3)

ISACK HADJAR	1-0	LIAM LAWSON
7	Japan	14 (+0.131s in Q2)

Williams

AlexANDER Albon	4-0 (3-0 without sprints)	CARLOS SAINZ
6	Australia	10 (+0.325s in Q3)
9	China (sprint)	13 (+0.786s in SQ2)
10	China	15 (+0.345s in Q2)
9	Japan	12 (+0.053s in Q2)

Sauber

NICO HULKENBERG	2-2 (2-1 without sprints)	GABRIEL BORTOLETO
17 (+0.063s in Q1)	Australia	15
19 (+0.136s in SQ1)	China (sprint)	14
12	China	19 (+0.220s in Q1)
16	Japan	17 (+0.052s in Q1)

In this article

Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics

Verstappen grabs surprise pole to defeat the McLarens