suzuka

Coming into Q3, McLaren had topped every session of the Japanese Grand Prix weekend – free practice, Q1, and Q2 – positioning the Woking-based team as the clear favourite for pole. Oscar Piastri led the way after the first runs in Q3, with Verstappen trailing by a quarter of a second.

“I just thought, ‘I’m going to give it everything in that last run,’” Verstappen explained his mindset going into the final minutes. “I knew it was quite a big gap — two and a half tenths on a track like this is a lot. But the McLarens didn’t find much more pace and that worked in my favour.”

Verstappen means that Piastri had clocked a 1:27.052 on his first attempt and improved just 0.025s in the dying moments of Q3. Norris made a bigger gain – shaving off half a second – but the British driver also had to deliver after a messy start to the final part of qualifying.

Comparing the deciding Q3 Laps: Verstappen vs Norris vs Piastri

When analysing the final Q3 laps, the differences in the data between Verstappen, Norris (+0.012s), and Piastri (+0.044s) are minimal. But the telemetry and GPS data reveal how the Red Bull driver edged out McLaren.

It started with higher straight-line speed going into the lap. Verstappen hit 325 km/h at the end of the pit straight, while Norris and Piastri reached 320 and 319 km/h respectively. It gave Verstappen an immediate edge — a tenth on Piastri and 0.061s on Norris — heading into turn 1.

That margin increased as Piastri had to correct a little snap in turn 2. “It wasn’t my best first sector, even a bit slower than my first run,” the Australian admitted in the post-qualifying press conference.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, kwalificatievergelijking Japan, bocht 1

Foto door: F1-Tempo

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Japan kwalificatievergelijking, exit Esses

Foto door: F1-Tempo

The little mistake carried into the famous Esses, where Piastri’s deficit to Verstappen increased to 0.288s. Verstappen, meanwhile, only lost a fraction to Norris through this section, despite suffering from understeer during the quick changes of direction. “I still had a lot of understeer in Sector 1, so I couldn’t really attack the corners the way I wanted to. But I made the most of it”, Verstappen told Dutch broadcaster Viaplay when analysing his pole lap.

That understeer carried on through the section following the Esses. Watching the onboard footage, Verstappen commented: “You try to carry as much speed as possible into turn 8, but I had understeer there as well. Turn 9 isn’t great for us in general, as our car is bouncing all over the place there.”

By the time the leading trio reached the hairpin — the slowest corner on the Suzuka circuit — Norris had clawed back time. The McLaren car looked more planted through that section of the track, meaning Norris was 0.075s up on Verstappen’s eventual pole time.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, qualifying comparison Japan, hairpin

Photo by: F1-Tempo

Heading into Spoon, Verstappen began to reclaim time again. The section is flat out, and just like on the main straight, the RB21’s superior top speed helped to close the gap. At the braking zone for Spoon, Norris was just 0.010s ahead – meaning both drivers were basically on level terms.

Here, a pattern that’s become familiar throughout the first race weekends of this season repeated itself: Norris lifts and brakes earlier than Verstappen, and gets on the throttle sooner. It gives Norris better exit speed from Spoon, which is crucial given the long flat-out section that follows through 130R up to the final chicane. On the overlay track map that entire part is shaded in papaya, showing Norris was fastest there, taking benefit of his better exit.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, kwalificatievergelijking Japan

Foto door: F1-Tempo

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Japan kwalificatievergelijking, Spoon

Foto door: F1-Tempo

As they approached the final chicane, Norris held a significant lead — 0.185s over Verstappen, as shown in the data below. It led to the defining moment of the entire qualifying session in Suzuka. The telemetry shows that once again Norris lifted and braked earlier than Verstappen, who delayed his braking point considerably for his final shot at pole. As a result, Verstappen gained over two tenths in this final braking zone alone — just enough to retake the lead.

While Norris had a marginally better exit due to the earlier throttle application, it wasn’t enough this time. Despite braking extremely late Verstappen managed to get a good enough exit and to hold his advantage across the line, securing pole by 0.012s. Norris also opened his DRS fractionally later than Verstappen and Piastri, which didn’t help him in the final sprint to the line.

“I knew there was a bit of time left in that final chicane,” Verstappen said post-session. “On the previous run, I missed the first kerbstone on the inside, so I knew that I could improve that section — and that was basically my lap.”

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, qualifying comparison Japan, final chicane

Photo by: F1-Tempo

The data confirms that Verstappen has extracted everything out of the RB21 around Suzuka, or as he put it himself: “This lap was right on the limit, maybe even over the limit in some places. I think this circuit suits me well, which helps — but the car also needs to deliver of course.”

Piastri, despite his early mistake, also delivered a remarkably strong lap. He managed to reduce the nearly three-tenth deficit to just 0.044s across the line, underlining McLaren’s overall pace.

The latter is also true when it comes to the race pace. Even Verstappen acknowledged that McLaren remains the benchmark for Sunday’s race: “This pole position doesn’t mean all our issues are suddenly solved. If it’s dry and if we get a straightforward race, then it’s going to be very tough to keep the McLarens behind. But at least we couldn’t have done any better today.”

In this article

Ronald Vording

Formula 1

Max Verstappen

Lando Norris

Oscar Piastri

Red Bull Racing

McLaren

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Where Verstappen made the difference against McLaren in Japan qualifying

Coming into Q3, McLaren had topped every session of the Japanese Grand Prix weekend – free practice, Q1, and Q2 – positioning the Woking-based team as the clear favourite for pole. Oscar Piastri led the way after the first runs in Q3, with Max Verstappen trailing by a quarter of a second.

“I just thought, ‘I’m going to give it everything in that last run,'” Verstappen explained of his mindset going into the final minutes. “I knew it was quite a big gap — two and a half tenths on a track like this is a lot. But the McLarens didn’t find much more pace and that worked in my favour.”

Piastri had clocked a 1m27.052s on his first attempt and improved just 0.025s in the dying moments of Q3. Norris made a bigger gain – shaving off half a second – but the British driver also had to deliver after a messy start to the final part of qualifying.

Comparing the deciding Q3 laps: Verstappen vs Norris vs Piastri

When analysing the final Q3 laps, the differences in the data between Verstappen, Norris (+0.012s), and Piastri (+0.044s) are minimal. But the telemetry and GPS data reveal how the Red Bull driver edged out McLaren.

It started with higher straight-line speed going into the lap. Verstappen hit 325km/h at the end of the pit straight, while Norris and Piastri reached 320km/h and 319km/h respectively. It gave Verstappen an immediate edge — a tenth on Piastri and 0.061s on Norris — heading into Turn 1.

That margin increased as Piastri had to correct a little snap in Turn 2. “It wasn’t my best first sector, even a bit slower than my first run,” the Australian admitted in the post-qualifying press conference.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, kwalificatievergelijking Japan, bocht 1

Foto door: F1-Tempo

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Japan kwalificatievergelijking, exit Esses

Foto door: F1-Tempo

The little mistake carried into the famous Esses, where Piastri’s deficit to Verstappen increased to 0.288s. Verstappen, meanwhile, only lost a fraction to Norris through this section, despite suffering from understeer during the quick changes of direction. “I still had a lot of understeer in sector one, so I couldn’t really attack the corners the way I wanted to,” Verstappen told Dutch broadcaster Viaplay when analysing his pole lap. “But I made the most of it.”

That understeer carried on through the section following the Esses. Watching the onboard footage, Verstappen commented: “You try to carry as much speed as possible into Turn 8, but I had understeer there as well. Turn 9 isn’t great for us in general, as our car is bouncing all over the place there.”

By the time the leading trio reached the hairpin — the slowest corner on the Suzuka circuit — Norris had clawed back time. The McLaren car looked more planted through that part of the track, meaning Norris was 0.075s up on Verstappen’s eventual pole time.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, qualifying Japan, hairpin

Photo by: F1-Tempo

Heading into Spoon, Verstappen began to reclaim time again. This section is flat out and, just like on the main straight, the RB21’s superior top speed helped to close the gap. At the braking zone for Spoon, Norris was just 0.010s ahead – meaning both drivers were basically on level terms.

Here, a pattern that’s become familiar throughout the first race weekends of the season repeated itself: Norris lifts and brakes earlier than Verstappen, and gets on the throttle sooner. It gives Norris better exit speed from Spoon, which is crucial given the long flat-out section that follows through 130R up to the final chicane. On the overlay track map, that entire part is shaded in papaya, showing Norris was fastest there, taking advantage of his better exit.

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, kwalificatievergelijking Japan

Foto door: F1-Tempo

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Japan kwalificatievergelijking, Spoon

Foto door: F1-Tempo

As they approached the final chicane, Norris held a significant lead — 0.185s over Verstappen, as shown in the data below. It led to the defining moment of the entire qualifying session at Suzuka. The telemetry shows that, once again, Norris lifted and braked earlier than Verstappen, who delayed his braking point considerably for his final shot at pole. As a result, Verstappen gained over two tenths in this final braking zone alone — just enough to retake the lead.

While Norris had a marginally better exit due to the earlier throttle application, it wasn’t enough this time. Despite braking extremely late, Verstappen managed to get a good enough exit to hold his advantage across the line, securing pole by 0.012s. Norris also opened his DRS fractionally later than Verstappen and Piastri, which didn’t help him in the final sprint to the line.

“I knew there was a bit of time left in that final chicane,” Verstappen said post-session. “On the previous run, I missed the first kerbstone on the inside, so I knew I could improve that section — and that was basically my lap.”

Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, qualifying Japan, last chicane

Photo by: F1-Tempo

The data confirms that Verstappen has extracted everything out of the RB21 around Suzuka, or as he put it himself: “This lap was right on the limit, maybe even over the limit in some places. I think this circuit suits me well, which helps — but the car also needs to deliver of course.”

Piastri, despite his early mistake, also delivered a remarkably strong lap. He managed to reduce the nearly three-tenth deficit to just 0.044s across the line, underlining McLaren’s overall pace.

The latter is also true when it comes to the race pace. Even Verstappen acknowledged that McLaren remains the benchmark for Sunday’s race: “This pole position doesn’t mean all our issues are suddenly solved. If it’s dry and if we get a straightforward race, then it’s going to be very tough to keep the McLarens behind. But at least we couldn’t have done any better today.”

In this article

Ronald Vording

Formula 1

Max Verstappen

Lando Norris

Oscar Piastri

Red Bull Racing

McLaren

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Bearman and Komatsu taken aback by top-10 qualifying at F1 Japanese GP

Oliver Bearman admitted he did not expect to get out of the first qualifying session for the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix before putting his Haas 10th on the grid.

Having benefitted from a trio of disqualifications to finish eighth last time out in China, Bearman continued to impress after progressing to Q3 at Suzuka.

In contrast, team-mate Esteban Ocon failed to get out of Q1 and will start down in 18th but, in front of a crowd with a growing number of fans for the squad following its technical deal with Toyota last year, Bearman delivered.

Despite being hampered by a number of red flags throughout practice and qualifying, the majority of which were caused by grass fires at the side of the track, Bearman was able to mix it at the right end of the field.

“I didn’t expect to go to Q2 either, so I was pretty happy to be in Q3 at the end,” he said. “I don’t think any of us expected that after everything that happened so far this weekend.

“It’s been quite difficult… very interrupted sessions this morning and yesterday afternoon.

“I hadn’t actually got a lap on the board on softs since FP1. So, to get out there and really build it up and have a good qualifying… I’m really proud of the team and myself as well.

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

“Generally I’ve had a good rhythm all weekend and I felt really confident with the car, which is what I’ve been telling the team. But they didn’t have anything to back that up yet.

“Then after Q1 and Q2, that was really where I started pushing the car and finally actually giving 100% everywhere.

“I hope to fight the guys in front, not behind – starting within the points, which is always good. I think we have better race pace relative to qualifying pace.”

Reaching Q3 for the first time in F1, particularly at a circuit like Suzuka, was something Bearman will not forget in a hurry.

“It’s amazing – it’s the most fun I’ve had probably in my life,” he added.

“It’s so cool. This car and qualifying on low fuel on a track like this is just incredible.

“The grip, especially with this new sector one, is so high. My neck doesn’t like it, but the rest of my body does. It’s really been amazing and so much fun.

“So far this weekend on the soft tyre, we haven’t really been extracting everything. So to be in Q3 on our weakest tyre is a good thing. I felt quite comfortable on the medium and the hard this weekend.

“So let’s see. I know there’s rain tomorrow predicted. But either way it’s going to be an interesting race.

“They [the fans] have been so cool. It’s been amazing. I’ve had so much support from the Japanese fans. Also being part of Haas, there’s a lot of support for us anyway. The Japanese fans are so creative, which is fantastic. It really makes it a pleasure to be here.”

Ayao Komatsu, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu echoed Bearman’s sentiments and also reserved special praise for the work completed behind the scenes at the track and back at the factory.

Bearman and Ocon were competing with a new floor, developed rapidly following a disappointing season-opener in Australia, while the team on the ground in Japan also delivered.

“If somebody told me this morning that we could get into Q3, I wouldn’t have believed it,” said Komatsu.

“Ollie’s done a fantastic job. But the team, from last night to this morning, then between FP3 and qualifying… I think we worked really, really well to get performance out of the car.

“Obviously, it means a lot. We are the smallest team on the grid, so everyone’s working extra hard. Then to get a result out of here would be huge.

“Like I said before, we took some risks to bring the floor over here. But then in FP2, the data was completely clear. It did work, so that was really pleasing.

“Then we worked on the car a bit more in preparation for qualifying, and everything just worked. Every single time we send the car out, we’re learning something, we’re improving.”

In this article

Mark Mann-Bryans

Formula 1

Oliver Bearman

Haas F1 Team

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Why Hamilton and Leclerc are already counting down to Ferrari F1 upgrades

Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are pinning their hopes on upgrades in Ferrari’s pipeline. The Scuderia’s Formula 1 drivers feel that the SF-25 in its current specification is lacking performance in comparison to the Mercedes and Red Bull cars.

Ferrari made a significant change to its car concept over the off-season in switching to a pull-rod front suspension layout, as technical director Loic Serra stated that the team had taken the prior push-rod operated format to its maximum.

However, the drivers have felt that the car is also missing overall aerodynamic load, and that upgrades planned for the season should help to improve its standing as the Prancing Horse aims to close in on Mercedes. Although Leclerc qualified fourth for the Japanese Grand Prix, Hamilton praised his team-mate for “outperforming the car” and revealed that the two drivers had diverged for the first time on set-up.

Leclerc reckoned he had made progress with his set-up changes over the Japan weekend. These have helped him feel more comfortable in the car, but he believes that the ultimate performance gains that have emerged as a result have only been small.

“I think we are even a bit behind Mercedes in terms of actual pace, so we’ll see,” Leclerc explained. “But on race pace, I’ve done quite a lot of changes over the weekend.

“I’m in a very different place compared to the beginning of the season and I feel a lot more at ease with the car, so I hope it can surprise us in a good way. I’m finding answers on what I need, which is good already, but that’s not unlocking so much performance.

“I can be at 100% of the car more often, that’s for sure – this will give me the confidence that I need going forward in the season.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

Photo by: Jayce Illman – Getty Images

“Hopefully with the upgrades that we have during the season, it will help us to close the gaps to the guys in front.”

Hamilton added: “I think Charles did a great lap today, so really, really well done to him. I think maybe he outperformed the car a little bit, but it was a great lap. From my side, I didn’t get everything that was needed in the car but, yeah, we need to upgrade for sure.”

Although Leclerc reckoned he’d put together a set-up that was conducive to a good race, Hamilton thought his choices might have hampered his qualifying potential with a view to getting more out of the race – leading to a snap in Q3 as he lacked feeling with the front end.

It has been suggested that Ferrari has needed to be more conservative with ride heights at Suzuka – partly in response to Hamilton’s plank wear-enforced disqualification in China. But it is also believed that the team suffers from increased aero sensitivity when it runs the car closer to the ground.

Leclerc appeared to refute the suggestions that the car was particularly ride-height sensitive, instead offering the more simple explanation that the car was simply lacking aerodynamic load.

GPS analysis of Leclerc’s fastest qualifying lap versus Verstappen’s ultimate pole time suggests that the Ferrari tends to struggle with stabilising the rear end out of corners, which leads to a loss of exit traction.

Compared to the laps set by the McLarens, the SF-25 lost time on the exit of Spoon. And Leclerc’s largest areas of time loss to Verstappen came at the exits from the hairpin and Casio Triangle corners, having been briefly up on time earlier in the lap through the Esses.

“We just need to work a little bit further to gain overall load, it’s not really how sensitive the ride heights are or where we are standing with the ride heights,” Leclerc added.

“It’s just that we are not fast enough and we don’t have enough grip to match what McLaren and Red Bull are doing in corners.”

Ferrari will likely look to the races beyond this current triple header to add downforce to the car – with the intention of making similar progress to what it achieved through the final stages of 2024.

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton

Charles Leclerc

Ferrari

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Bearman and Komatsu surprised by Haas qualifying pace at F1 Japanese GP

Oliver Bearman admitted he did not expect to get out of the first qualifying session for the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix before putting his Haas 10th on the grid.

Having benefitted from a trio of disqualifications to finish eighth last time out in China, Bearman continued to impress after progressing to Q3 at Suzuka.

In contrast, team-mate Esteban Ocon failed to get out of Q1 and will start down in 18th but, in front of a crowd with a growing number of fans for the squad following its technical deal with Toyota last year, Bearman delivered.

Despite being hampered by a number of red flags throughout practice and qualifying, the majority of which were caused by grass fires at the side of the track, Bearman was able to mix it at the right end of the field.

“I didn’t expect to go to Q2 either, so I was pretty happy to be in Q3 at the end,” he said. “I don’t think any of us expected that after everything that happened so far this weekend.

“It’s been quite difficult, very interrupted sessions this morning and yesterday afternoon.

“I hadn’t actually got a lap on the board on softs since FP1. So, to get out there and really build it up and have a good qualifying, I’m really proud of the team and myself as well.

Oliver Bearman, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“Generally I’ve had a good rhythm all weekend and I felt really confident with the car, which is what I’ve been telling the team, but they didn’t have anything to back it up yet.

“Then after Q1 and Q2, that was really where I started pushing the car and finally actually giving 100% everywhere.

“I hope to fight the guys in front, not behind – starting within the points, which is always good. I think we have better race pace relative to qualifying pace.”

Reaching Q3 for the first time in F1, particularly at a circuit like Suzuka, was something Bearman will not forget in a hurry.

“It’s amazing – it’s the most fun I’ve had probably in my life,” he added.

“It’s so cool. This car and qualifying on low fuel on a track like this is just incredible.

“The grip, especially with this new sector one, is so high. My neck doesn’t like it, but the rest of my body does. It’s really been amazing and so much fun.

“So far this weekend on the soft tyre we haven’t really been extracting everything. So to be in Q3 on our weakest tyre is a good thing. I felt quite comfortable on the medium and the hard this weekend.

“So let’s see. I know there’s rain tomorrow predicted. But either way it’s going to be an interesting race.

“They [the fans] have been so cool. It’s been amazing. I’ve had so much support from the Japanese fans. Also being part of Haas, there’s a lot of support for us anyway. The Japanese fans are so creative, which is fantastic. It really makes it a pleasure to be here.”

Ayao Komatsu, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu echoed Bearman’s sentiments and also reserved special praise for the work completed behind the scenes at the track and back at the factory.

Bearman and Ocon were competing with a new floor, developed rapidly following a disappointing season opener in Australia, while the team on the ground in Japan also delivered.

“If somebody told me this morning that we can get into Q3, I don’t believe it,” said Komatsu.

“Ollie’s done a fantastic job, but the team, from last night to this morning, then between FP3 and qualifying, I think we worked really, really well to get performance out of the car.

“Obviously, it means a lot. We are the smallest team on the grid, so everyone’s working extra hard. Then to get a result out of here would be huge.

“The floor, like I said before, we took some risks to bring it over here, but then FP2, data was completely clear. It did work, so that was really pleasing.

“Then we worked on the car a bit more, preparation for qualifying, and everything just worked. But again, it’s just every single time we send the car out, we’re learning something, we’re improving.”

In this article

Mark Mann-Bryans

Formula 1

Oliver Bearman

Haas F1 Team

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Hamilton and Leclerc counting down to Ferrari upgrade package

Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are pinning their hopes on upgrades in Ferrari’s pipeline. The Scuderia’s drivers feel that the SF-25 in its current specification is lacking performance in comparison to the Mercedes and Red Bull cars.

Ferrari made a significant change to its car concept over the off-season in switching to a pull-rod front suspension layout, as technical director Loic Serra stated that the team had taken the prior push-rod operated format to its maximum.

However, the drivers have felt that the car is also missing overall aerodynamic load, and that upgrades planned for the season should help to improve its standing as the Prancing Horse aims to close in on Mercedes. Although Leclerc qualified fourth for the Japanese Grand Prix, Hamilton praised his team-mate for “outperforming the car” and revealed that the two drivers had diverged for the first time on set-up.

Leclerc reckoned he had made progress with his set-up changes over the Japan weekend. These have helped him feel more comfortable in the car, but he believes that the ultimate performance gains that have emerged as a result have only been small.

“I think we are even a bit behind Mercedes in terms of actual pace, so we’ll see. But on race pace, I’ve done quite a lot of changes over the weekend,” Leclerc explained.

“I’m in a very different place compared to the beginning of the season and I feel a lot more at ease with the car, so I hope it can surprise us in a good way. I’m finding answers on what I need, which is good already, but that’s not unlocking so much performance.

“I can be at 100% of the car more often, that’s for sure. I’m confident that this will give me the confidence that I need going forward in the season.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

Photo by: Jayce Illman – Getty Images

“Hopefully with the upgrades that we have during the season, it will help us to close the gaps to the guys in front.”

“I think Charles did a great lap today,” Hamilton added, “so really, really well done to him. I think maybe he outperformed the car a little bit, but it was a great lap. From my side I didn’t get everything that was needed in the car, but yeah, we need to upgrade for sure.”

Although Leclerc reckoned he’d put together a set-up that was conducive to a good race, Hamilton thought his choices might have hampered his qualifying potential with a view to getting more out of the race – leading to a snap in Q3 as he lacked feeling with the front end.

It has been suggested that Ferrari has needed to be more conservative with ride heights at Suzuka – partly in response to Hamilton’s plank wear-enforced disqualification in China. But it is also believed that the team suffers from increased aero sensitivity when it runs the car closer to the ground.

Leclerc appeared to refute the suggestions that the car was particularly ride-height sensitive, instead offering the more simple explanation that the car was simply lacking aerodynamic load.

GPS analysis of Leclerc’s fastest qualifying lap versus Verstappen’s ultimate pole time suggests that the Ferrari tends to struggle with stabilising the rear end out of corners, which leads to a loss of exit traction.

Compared to the laps set by the McLarens, the SF-25 lost time on the exit of Spoon. And Leclerc’s largest areas of time loss to Verstappen over the lap came at the exits from the hairpin and Casio Triangle corners, having been briefly up on time earlier in the lap through the Esses.

“We just need to work a little bit further to gain overall load, it’s not really how sensitive the ride heights are or where we are standing with the ride heights,” Leclerc added.

“It’s just that we are not fast enough and we don’t have enough grip to match what McLaren and Red Bull are doing in corners.”

Ferrari will likely look to the races beyond this current triple header to add downforce to the car – with the intention of making similar progress through the field as it did through the final stages of 2024.

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Lewis Hamilton

Charles Leclerc

Ferrari

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How Red Bull’s controversial Tsunoda-Lawson F1 swap may be working already

Despite returning to the slower Racing Bulls car, Liam Lawson outqualified his Red Bull replacement Yuki Tsunoda for Formula 1’s Japanese Grand Prix. But there are signs Red Bull’s merciless switch may actually be working already.

Leaving aside the ruthlessness of Red Bull’s decision to demote Lawson after two difficult races on circuits he didn’t know, what ultimately mattered to the team is having someone in the second car who could be a regular scorer of big points to boost its constructors’ hopes, and ideally as soon as possible.

If you take Saturday’s qualifying session in isolation – in which Tsunoda placed 15th in Q2 behind both Racing Bulls, including the driver he replaced – you would have to say the jury is still out on the Japanese driver. Tsunoda had a poor start to his final lap, drifting out of the final chicane with the unstable Red Bull, which left him starting his flyer on the back foot, and then getting out of shape in Turn 1. Afterwards he said not nailing the warm-up of the tyres cost him dearly.

“In Q1 I felt pretty good – I just missed the window, I guess,” Tsunoda explained. “I think the window that this car can operate [in] is very narrow – most of the things have to almost be perfect, especially warm-up.

“And, especially in Q2 run two, I wasn’t able to do the warm-up I wanted as the previous run, so that makes a big difference in the end. I kind of recognised it but it was a bit too late, and I wasn’t able to put it all together when it mattered.”

Tsunoda said it was ‘a big shame’ not getting into Q3, which had been his baseline pre-weekend target. But what he shouldn’t feel any shame about is how he has acquitted himself across the weekend as a whole.

Having been dropped into the car with no prior mileage in front of his home fans and Honda’s watchful eye – on one of F1’s most difficult circuits – the pressure on Tsunoda was immense. However, if he was feeling any of it, he didn’t show it throughout the weekend. He ran team-mate Verstappen close in first free practice – with the usual caveat of unknown engine modes – and like others was derailed by FP2’s four red flags, which limited his running.

Having felt no weird behaviour from the RB21 in the Milton Keynes simulator last week, the on-the-knife-edge behaviour of Red Bull’s 2025 machine did dawn on him once he was afforded first-hand experience. But, while Lawson felt he needed much more time to adjust, which he cruelly wasn’t afforded, Tsunoda seemed to cope relatively well already, setting the ninth-fastest time in FP3 and seventh in Q1 before his messier Q2 performance.

Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Clive Mason/Getty Images

The Red Bull not only has a narrower set-up window than the Racing Bulls lineage of cars the 24-year-old is accustomed to, but its on-the-nose behaviour also means it is much more unstable, something Verstappen has also complained about in spite of his stunning, heart-in-mouth pole position.

“This car is on the edge with the rear but at least for now, I feel pretty OK with the stability,” Tsunoda said. “I would say in terms of the rear sliding, I’m feeling it but, at the same time, this kind of direction is the set-up that I have to drive to perform well in the car. I started recognising it throughout the three practices, it just wasn’t enough in the end to put it all together.”

Team principal Christian Horner, who had long been reluctant to promote Tsunoda, also sounded more impressed than he had previously been. “It was a great shame for Yuki today because actually his Q1 was very competitive, he was within a tenth,” Horner told F1 TV. “It was building nicely [but] in Q2 he actually didn’t go quicker than Q1 and he had a big moment at the start of his lap.

“By the time you’ve given away three, four tenths, you’re never going to get that back around here, so it was a shame because the qualifying doesn’t represent the job that he’s done up until this point.”

He then expanded to Sky: “I think he would have comfortably made the top 10 today. Up to that point I think he’s actually done very well, and I was pleased to see Liam settling in well as well at Racing Bulls.”

Lawson was disappointed as well, claiming 14th on the grid while team-mate Isack Hadjar took a superb seventh. But Lawson also demonstrated much more promise in his first competitive outing in the Racing Bulls than the Q2 result showed, and most certainly felt much more at ease than on his two disastrous weekends with Red Bull.

“It’s been a tricky day – I felt really good, even stronger than yesterday in terms of comfort in the car,” he said. “It was alright in Q1 and then through Q2 the balance sort of got away from us and I just couldn’t get much more out of it.”

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Mark Thompson – Getty Images

Poetically, Lawson and Tsunoda will encounter each other on the grid on Sunday, starting from 14th and 15th respectively. But Lawson shrugged off any extra significance to having ‘his’ Red Bull starting behind him with Tsunoda at the wheel: “No, it’s just another car. I mean, with tomorrow’s weather it’s going to be an exciting enough race probably, so I’ll just be focused on trying to get a good start and moving forward.”

In the past, Tsunoda repeatedly wondered why he hadn’t been promoted to Red Bull. And, while he has belatedly been handed his dream move in difficult circumstances, he has now also woken up to the harsh reality of just how hard the Red Bull is to drive and set up, and perhaps how easy Verstappen has made it look despite the Dutchman’s own gripes.

But from day one – and it admittedly is a very small sample size – it doesn’t seem like Tsunoda is wrestling with the Red Bull’s typical weaknesses to the same extent that Lawson or other drivers in that seat have.

“The positive thing is I started to understand the car,” he concluded after setting aside his initial disappointment. “It’s quite difficult to operate this car properly, it’s quite narrow but at least I feel confidence in the car, and I know what to do for the future. I finished the Q2 with finally reading the whole textbook about the Red Bull, you know what I mean?”

Make no mistake, Tsunoda still has his work cut out to make his dream move work and really make the seat his own. But if you look past Q2 alone, his baseline pace has already been stronger than his predecessor, and so has his confidence in the car.

In this article

Filip Cleeren

Formula 1

Liam Lawson

Yuki Tsunoda

Red Bull Racing

Racing Bulls

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Red Bull’s controversial Tsunoda-Lawson F1 swap may be working already

Despite returning to the slower Racing Bulls car, Liam Lawson outqualified his Red Bull replacement Yuki Tsunoda in Japan. But there are signs Red Bull’s merciless switch may actually be working already.

Leaving aside the ruthlessness of Red Bull’s decision to demote Lawson after two difficult races on circuits he didn’t know, what ultimately mattered to the team is having someone in the second car who could be a regular scorer of big points to boost its constructors’ hopes, and ideally as soon as possible.

If you take Saturday’s qualifying session in isolation – in which Tsunoda placed 15th in Q2 behind both Racing Bulls, including the driver he replaced – you would have to say the jury is still out on the Japanese driver. Tsunoda had a poor start to his final lap, drifting out of the final chicane with the unstable Red Bull, which left him starting his flyer on the back foot, and then getting out of shape in Turn 1. Afterwards he said not nailing the warm-up of the tyres cost him dearly.

“In Q1 I felt pretty good. I just missed the window, I guess. I think the window that this car can operate [in] is very narrow. Most of the things have to almost be perfect, especially warm-up,” Tsunoda explained. “And especially in Q2 run two, I wasn’t able to do the warm-up I wanted as the previous run, so that makes a big difference in the end. I kind of recognised it but it was a bit too late, and I wasn’t able to put it all together when it mattered.”

Tsunoda said it was ‘a big shame’ not getting into Q3, which had been his baseline pre-weekend target. But what he shouldn’t feel any shame about is how he has acquitted himself across the weekend.

Having been dropped into the car with no prior mileage in front of his home fans and Honda’s watchful eye – on one of F1’s most difficult circuits – the pressure on Tsunoda was immense. But if he was feeling any of it, he didn’t show it throughout the weekend. He ran team-mate Verstappen close in first free practice – with the usual caveat of unknown engine modes – and like others was derailed by FP2’s four red flags, which limited his running.

Having felt no weird behaviour from the RB21 in the Milton Keynes simulator last week, the on-the-knife-edge behaviour of Red Bull’s 2025 machine did dawn on him once he was afforded first-hand experience. But while Lawson felt he needed much more time to adjust, which he cruelly wasn’t afforded, Tsunoda seemed to cope relatively well already, setting the ninth-fastest time in FP3 and seventh in Q1 before his messier Q2 performance.

Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls

Photo by: Clive Mason/Getty Images

The Red Bull not only has a narrower set-up window than the Racing Bulls lineage of cars the 24-year-old is accustomed to, but its on-the-nose behaviour also means it is much more unstable, something Verstappen has also complained about in spite of his stunning, heart-in-mouth pole position.

“This car is on the edge with the rear but at least for now, I feel pretty okay with the stability,” Tsunoda said. “I would say in terms of the rear sliding, I’m feeling it, but at the same time this kind of direction is the set-up that I have to drive to perform well in the car. I started recognising it throughout the three practices, it just wasn’t enough in the end to put it all together.”

Team principal Christian Horner, who had long been reluctant to promote Tsunoda, also sounded more impressed than he had previously been. “It was a great shame for Yuki today because actually his Q1 was very competitive, he was within a tenth,” Horner told F1 TV. “It was building nicely [but] in Q2 he actually didn’t go quicker than Q1 and he had a big moment at the start of his lap.

“By the time you’ve given away three, four tenths, you’re never going to get that back around here, so it was a shame because the qualifying doesn’t represent the job that he’s done up until this point.

He then expanded to Sky: “I think he would have comfortably made the top 10 today. Up to that point I think he’s actually done very well, and I was pleased to see Liam settling in well as well at Racing Bulls.”

Lawson was also disappointed, claiming 14th on the grid while team-mate Isack Hadjar took a superb seventh. But he too showed much more promise in his first competitive outing in the Racing Bulls than the Q2 result showed, and most certainly he felt much more at ease than on his two disastrous weekends with Red Bull.

“It’s been a tricky day. I felt really good, even stronger than yesterday in terms of comfort in the car,” he said. “It was alright in Q1 and then through Q2 the balance sort of got away from us and I just couldn’t get much more out of it.”

Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Mark Thompson – Getty Images

Poetically, Lawson and Tsunoda will encounter each other on the grid tomorrow, starting from 14th and 15th respectively. But Lawson shrugged off any extra significance to having ‘his’ Red Bull starting behind him with Tsunoda at the wheel: “No, it’s just another car. I mean, with tomorrow’s weather it’s going to be an exciting enough race probably, so I’ll just be focused on trying to get a good start and moving forward.”

In the past Tsunoda repeatedly wondered why he hadn’t been promoted to Red Bull yet. And while he has belatedly been handed his dream move in difficult circumstances, he has now also woken up to the harsh reality of just how hard the Red Bull is to drive and set up, and perhaps how easy Verstappen has made it look despite the Dutchman’s own gripes.

But from day one – and it admittedly is a very small sample size – it doesn’t seem like Tsunoda is wrestling with the Red Bull’s typical weaknesses to the same extent that Lawson or other drivers in that seat have.

“The positive thing is I started to understand the car,” he concluded after setting aside his initial disappointment. “It’s quite difficult to operate this car properly, it’s quite narrow but at least I feel confidence in the car, and I know what to do for the future. I finished Q2 [having finally read] the whole textbook about the Red Bull, you know what I mean?”

Make no mistake, Tsunoda still has his work cut out to make his dream move work and really make the seat his own. But if you look past Q2 alone, his baseline pace has already been stronger than his predecessor, and so has his confidence in the car.

In this article

Filip Cleeren

Formula 1

Red Bull Racing

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Hadjar explains “nightmare” seatbelt pain in Japanese GP qualifying

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.

Photos from Japanese GP – Practice & Qualifying

In this article

Jake Boxall-Legge

Formula 1

Isack Hadjar

Racing Bulls

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