Max Verstappen stunned the F1 paddock to claim an against-the-odds pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix, beating Lando Norris by just 12-thousandths of a second.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner called it “pure class”, whilst Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase labelled the lap “insane” over team radio in the immediate aftermath.
With the other McLaren of Oscar Piastri also less than half-a-tenth shy of the Dutchman, the sensational lap secured first on the grid by the narrowest of margins.
Given the relative performance of the RB21 compared to the MCL39, it underscores the brilliance of Verstappen’s drive, to drag every ounce of pace available from his Red Bull.
The four-time F1 drivers’ champion admitted post-session that not only was he on the limit throughout, but at times he was over it.
Simply put, it is a car that does not belong on pole. It is nervous and unpredictable, two qualities that can be near-impossible to get on top of, especially at a flowing circuit like Suzuka.
In contrast, Yuki Tsunoda in the other Red Bull qualified P15 and will start just one place higher on account of Carlos Sainz’s grid penalty.
The home hero was out-qualified by both Racing Bulls and has already spoken about how different the RB21 is in the simulator compared to on track.
Japanese Grand Prix qualifying times below. The article continues after.
Low downforce set up and notable top-speed advantage
But where did Verstappen make the difference in his Red Bull? The 27-year-old utilised a low-downforce setup, in juxtaposition to the “comfortable” approach employed by Tsunoda, as Jacques Villeneuve put it.
It was also more radical than McLaren found optimal and gave the 63-time grand prix winner a significant top-speed advantage over the Woking squad’s cars.
The speed trap shows he enjoyed a surplus of about five kilometres per hour over Norris and Piastri in Q3, much to his benefit down the start/finish straight and through the infamous 130R corner.
Top speed comparisons below. The article continues thereafter.
Battle against Norris
The direct comparison with Norris shows the majesty of Verstappen’s lap. Interestingly, despite opting for the low-downforce package, the Red Bull driver was quicker than the Briton through a number of corners, including the lightning-fast esses sequence in Sector 1.
On Friday, that was his Achilles heel, complaining of understeer in the RB21. It also goes to show the level of confidence Verstappen had built up in the car over the weekend.
Further still, that he is only three-hundredths of a second slower than Norris in the twisty first sector makes all the difference later on in the lap.
Ultimately, Verstappen gained just enough time on the straights to beat the McLaren. Plus, the speed and throttle traces show that a quick Turn 13 and 14 section also helped. That offset Norris’ strong end to the lap through the final chicane.
View the direct comparison between Verstappen and Norris below. The article continues thereafter.
The devil in the smallest of details
Verstappen was able to brake later and carry more speed into the corners of the Suzuka circuit than Norris, who conversely was generally quicker back onto the accelerator – but not always.
That means the Dutchman had longer at top speed, maximising that advantage, which was already higher than the McLaren due to his setup choice.
It shows us that the Red Bull driver was wringing the neck of his car through the corners, using his confidence and skill to overcome the more unsettled and less stable nature of it through the turns.
The speed and throttle traces are below. The article continues thereafter.
Stringing it all together
Looking at the sector breakdown (below), Verstappen was not quickest in any of the three. They went to Norris in the first and then Oscar Piastri in the second and third.
But it just goes to show how important it is to string a consistent lap together, even more so at Suzuka.
Secondly, Norris’ final sector cost him dearly. It does not appear that he made a significant error looking at the head-to-head with Verstappen, but he just did not have the straight-line speed needed in the end. It was four km/h down on Verstappen and Piastri at that point of the lap.
In the grand prix, however, without rain, McLaren should enjoy an advantage over Verstappen in race trim on account of its superior long-run performance.
The Red Bull will, therefore, have a tough time holding Norris and Piastri at bay. On the other hand, Suzuka is not an easy place to overtake, meaning the race could be just as in the balance as qualifying.
