Which Formula 1 driver made the most of the Japanese Grand Prix weekend?
It’s time to give your verdict on which driver did the best with the equipment at their disposal over the last three days.
Review how each driver got on below and vote for who impressed you the most at Suzuka.
Driver performance summary
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Vote for your driver of the weekend
Which driver do you think did the best job throughout the race weekend?
Who got the most out of their car in qualifying and the race? Who put their team mate in the shade?
Cast your vote below and explain why you chose the driver you picked in the comments.
Who was the best driver of the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix weekend?
No opinion (0%)
Gabriel Bortoleto (0%)
Nico Hulkenberg (0%)
Carlos Sainz Jnr (0%)
Alexander Albon (0%)
Yuki Tsunoda (6%)
Isack Hadjar (11%)
Oliver Bearman (0%)
Esteban Ocon (0%)
Pierre Gasly (0%)
Jack Doohan (0%)
Fernando Alonso (0%)
Lance Stroll (0%)
George Russell (0%)
Andrea Kimi Antonelli (17%)
Liam Lawson (0%)
Max Verstappen (67%)
Lewis Hamilton (0%)
Charles Leclerc (0%)
Oscar Piastri (0%)
Lando Norris (0%)
Total Voters: 18
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Fernando Alonso was stunned by the lap that earned Max Verstappen pole position at tomorrow’s Japanese Grand Prix. The veteran driver, who was eliminated in Q2, described it as a “magical moment” while speaking to reporters on Saturday afternoon. “Only he can do it, only he can do it,” Alonso told Viaplay after the Dutchman snatched pole from Lando Norris by 0.012 seconds. “I …Keep reading
Fernando Alonso described Max Verstappen’s surprise pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix as a “magical moment.”
The Aston Martin driver was eliminated in the second round of qualifying and was able to watch Verstappen snatch pole away from Lando Norris by a hundredth of a second with his final lap in qualifying.
“Only he can do it, only he can do it,” Alonso told Viaplay after the session finished. “I think there is no other driver at the moment that can drive a car and put it so high, or higher than the car deserves.
“I think it was a magical moment for everyone here.”
Alonso has claimed 22 pole positions in his career, the last of which came at the German Grand Prix in 2012. Verstappen arrived in F1 three years later and took his 42nd pole today.
While Lance Stroll qualified the other Aston Martin last, Alonso reached Q2 and will start from 13th place. He doesn’t believe the car was capable of much better.
“I think we gave it everything on track today,” he said. “Unfortunately, maybe we don’t have the pace yet to be in Q3. P14 in Q1, P13 in Q2, maybe it’s where we deserve [to be] today.”
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He is hopeful the possibility of rain ahead of tomorrow’s race will “offer more opportunities” for Aston Martin. “I think by pure pace, we’re struggling to be in the points, probably.”
Alonso is yet to score this season after suffering a brake problem in China and crashing in the rain-hit Australian Grand Prix.
“In Australia I was pushing, I was fast but I didn’t finish the race,” he reflected. “That can happen in the rain tomorrow.
“You can be conservative and see what happens at the end of the race so you can attack and try to be fast with the risk of another DNF. We will try to do our best strategy tomorrow.”
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Formula 1 world champion Fernando Alonso was left confused by his spin during second practice for the Japanese Grand Prix and suggested it may have been caused by a gust of wind.
The Aston Martin driver lost control at the entry to Suzuka’s Turn 8 and spun across the gravel resulting in his AMR25 becoming beached, with FP2’s second red-flag period subsequently happening.
Alonso was the second driver to spin off during the session after Alpine rookie Jack Doohan crashed at Turn 1 having not closed his DRS heading into the high-speed bend.
The Spaniard said: “I need to review it. I lost the car in a weird way, it’s very windy and very gusty out there, and the car is a little bit critical. But yeah, I don’t know if I put a tyre on the grass or something.”
That appears to be exactly what happened. This section of the lap is more technically challenging than it looks since the cars must shed speed at the last of the ‘S’ corners, then build it up again through the constant-radius Nippon curve that follows.
The first Degner Curve, Turn 8, is more open than the second, so the drivers look to carry as much speed through there as possible.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing crash
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
To do this, drivers naturally move to the left-hand extremities of the track to open out the right-hander. Analysis of the onboard footage clearly shows Alonso straying over the white line on the approach, with his left-front wheel on the grass as he passes the 50-metre board.
The left-front was fully on the grass when he began to steer right. This unsettled the car’s rear end, which Alonso tried to correct by jinking the wheel back to the left before steering right again.
But, by this point, the AMR25 was on a trajectory that caused it to miss the apex of the corner and, despite Alonso applying more right-hand steering lock, momentum carried the car onto the kerbs. From there, he was a passenger.
Whether there was a gust of wind at the critical moment only the telemetry is likely to show, but all the drivers complained about having a headwind through the ‘S’ curves during practice. On the run into the Degners, the wind would have been blowing from right to left, and slightly to the rear of the car.
Despite this setback, Alonso remained optimistic for the rest of the Japanese weekend.
“I think we’re slightly more competitive than in China [he retired having started 13th],” he said. “So hopefully Q3 is possible tomorrow.”
Read Also:
In this article
Stuart Codling
Formula 1
Fernando Alonso
Aston Martin Racing
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Even Formula 1 world champions make mistakes – although Fernando Alonso indicated that fluctuations in the headwind at a critical part of the lap at Suzuka could have tipped him into the spin that brought second practice for the Japanese Grand Prix to a halt.
Alonso lost control at the entry to the first Degner turn and spun across the gravel, where the car became beached, requiring the second red-flag period of the session while his AMR25 could be recovered.
There is no means of extracting cars from trackside here because of the topography of the circuit: a short but sharp drop lies beyond the tyre barrier on the outside, while on the inside a grass bank slopes up to the outside of 130R.
“I don’t know, I need to review it,” Alonso said in the media pen after FP2.
“I lost the car in a weird way, it’s very windy and very gusty out there, and the car is a little bit critical. But yeah, I don’t know if I put a tyre on the grass or something.”
That appears to be exactly what happened.
This section of the lap is more technically challenging than it looks since the cars must shed speed at the last of the ‘S’ corners, then build it up again through the constant-radius Nippon curve that follows. The first Degner is more open than the second, so the drivers look to carry as much speed through there as possible.
To do this, drivers naturally move to the left-hand extremities of the track to open out the right-hander. Analysis of the onboard footage clearly shows Alonso straying over the white line on the approach, with his left-front wheel on the grass as he passes the 50-metre board.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing crash
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
The left-front was fully on the grass when he began to steer right. This unsettled the car’s rear end, which Alonso tried to correct by jinking the wheel back to the left before steering right again.
But, by this point, the AMR25 was on a trajectory that caused it to miss the apex of the corner and, despite Alonso applying more right-hand steering lock, momentum carried the car onto the kerbs. From there, he was a passenger.
Whether there was a gust of wind at the critical moment only the telemetry is likely to show, but all the drivers complained about having a headwind through the ‘S’ curves during practice. On the run into the Degners, the wind would have been blowing from right to left, and slightly to the rear of the car.
Despite this setback, Alonso remained optimistic for the rest of the Japanese weekend.
“I think we’re slightly more competitive than in China,” he said. “So hopefully Q3 is possible tomorrow.”
In this article
Stuart Codling
Formula 1
Fernando Alonso
Aston Martin Racing
Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics
Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso – in his 22nd Formula 1 campaign – is still encountering a new experience. It’s not just the six rookie racers on the 2025 grid. In Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, he’s racing his own official protege.
Since 2023, Bortoleto has been a part of Alonso’s A14 driver management stable.
This is run by Albert Resclosa Coll and Alberto Fernandez Albilares along with the double F1 world champion, but in putting Bortoleto on the F1 grid, A14 has one of its clients actually racing against its founder on the grandest stage in motorsport.
In the modern motorsport age, that’s a unique situation. Therefore, Motorsport.com asked Alonso and Bortoleto to explain exactly how it will work if their respective green machines ever come close on track in 2025.
“I think there are clear rules that I stay in front! That’s my understanding!” Alonso initially joked at last weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix. “No, jokes aside, it’s great to see Gabriel’s career so far. For us at A14, we feel extremely proud of the relationship.
“This year is going to be the first year he’s not winning [after Bortoleto won the 2023 Formula 3 and 2024 Formula 2 championships as a rookie in each category], so we have to maybe accept that.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
“But it’s part of his learning curve. For me, it’s a bit different. All the advice and insights I’ve given him over the past two years – it’s a bit strange now. Because I’m giving him the same, trying to help him as much as I can with experience of circuits, preparation, how to approach race weekends, marketing activities, the way to spend energy, save energy – all those kinds of things [now in F1 with me].
“I don’t think this is affecting any of the performance. At the end of the day, we rely a lot on our teams, our cars, and our packages.
“I don’t feel like I’m giving away something magic and someone will benefit. I’m just trying to apply common sense and help him perform when he puts the helmet on, which is the most important part of Formula 1. I think it’s working fine and will continue to do so.”
Ahead of the Australian GP season opener, Bortoleto sought out his manager’s advice on dealing with his first experience of wet-weather F1 competition. He also discussed tyre strategy with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on the drivers’ parade in Melbourne.
But a simple focus on driving within the emerging dry ‘tram lines’ was what Alonso emphasised. In the end, both drivers crashed out, with Bortoleto joking, “He told me, “just survive” and then both of us died!”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
“Regarding the rules, I have in my contract that I need to give him a slipstream every time I see him in quali!” the Brazilian also quipped in the Shanghai pre-event press conference, where Alonso was quick to point how long the back straight is at the Chinese venue.
“He’s been very good. He’s been able to teach me a lot of these things – how to maximise my performance on track by managing my efforts outside of it. Things like how to handle the [early GP weekend] days here, Thursdays and Fridays, to be focused on what really matters during the weekend. It’s been very nice so far.
“In Australia, we didn’t really get to fight each other properly, but hopefully, in China, we can have some side-by-side battles. That would be nice for me.
“I’ve watched him my whole life racing, and now racing against him in Formula 1, with him also being my manager, it’s going to be very nice. A good opportunity.”
Ultimately, that hope did not come to pass in Shanghai, with Alonso well ahead in the sprint (although 13s behind Lance Stroll in the other AMR24) before Bortoleto spun off early in the GP.
Alonso retired from that contest after just four laps due to debris getting stuck in his Aston’s braking system.
Motorsport.com spotted the pair deep in commiserating conversation on one of the walkways over the giant pond that houses many of the team hospitality buildings in the huge Shanghai paddock. It has not been the start either wanted to the 2025 campaign.
And the wait for the fun stuff – a racing chapter in this unique relationship – for now goes on too…
Read Also:
In this article
Alex Kalinauckas
Formula 1
Fernando Alonso
Gabriel Bortoleto
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Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso – in his 22nd Formula 1 campaign – is still encountering a new experience. It’s not just the six rookie racers on the 2025 grid. In Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto, he’s racing his own official protege.
Since 2023, Bortoleto has been a part of Alonso’s A14 driver management stable.
This is run by Albert Resclosa Coll and Alberto Fernandez Albilares along with the double F1 world champion, but in putting Bortoleto on the F1 grid, A14 has one of its clients actually racing against its founder on the grandest stage in motorsport.
In the modern motorsport age, that’s a unique situation. Therefore, Autosport asked Alonso and Bortoleto to explain exactly how it will work if their respective green machines ever come close on track in 2025.
“I think there are clear rules that I stay in front! That’s my understanding!” Alonso initially joked at last weekend’s Chinese Grand Prix. “No, jokes aside, it’s great to see Gabriel’s career so far. For us at A14, we feel extremely proud of the relationship.
“This year is going to be the first year he’s not winning [after Bortoleto won the 2023 Formula 3 and 2024 Formula 2 championships as a rookie in each category], so we have to maybe accept that.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
“But it’s part of his learning curve. For me, it’s a bit different. All the advice and insights I’ve given him over the past two years – it’s a bit strange now. Because I’m giving him the same, trying to help him as much as I can with experience of circuits, preparation, how to approach race weekends, marketing activities, the way to spend energy, save energy – all those kinds of things [now in F1 with me].
“I don’t think this is affecting any of the performance. At the end of the day, we rely a lot on our teams, our cars, and our packages.
“I don’t feel like I’m giving away something magic and someone will benefit. I’m just trying to apply common sense and help him perform when he puts the helmet on, which is the most important part of Formula 1. I think it’s working fine and will continue to do so.”
Ahead of the Australian GP season opener, Bortoleto sought out his manager’s advice on dealing with his first experience of wet-weather F1 competition. He also discussed tyre strategy with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen on the drivers’ parade in Melbourne.
But a simple focus on driving within the emerging dry ‘tram lines’ was what Alonso emphasised. In the end, both drivers crashed out, with Bortoleto joking, “He told me, “just survive” and then both of us died!”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber
Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images
“Regarding the rules, I have in my contract that I need to give him a slipstream every time I see him in quali!” the Brazilian also quipped in the Shanghai pre-event press conference, where Alonso was quick to point how long the back straight is at the Chinese venue.
“He’s been very good. He’s been able to teach me a lot of these things – how to maximise my performance on track by managing my efforts outside of it. Things like how to handle the [early GP weekend] days here, Thursdays and Fridays, to be focused on what really matters during the weekend. It’s been very nice so far.
“In Australia, we didn’t really get to fight each other properly, but hopefully, in China, we can have some side-by-side battles. That would be nice for me.
“I’ve watched him my whole life racing, and now racing against him in Formula 1, with him also being my manager, it’s going to be very nice. A good opportunity.”
Ultimately, that hope did not come to pass in Shanghai, with Alonso well ahead in the sprint (although 13s behind Lance Stroll in the other AMR24) before Bortoleto spun off early in the grand prix.
Alonso retired from that contest after just four laps due to debris getting stuck in his Aston’s braking system.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin Racing
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
Autosport spotted the pair deep in commiserating conversation on one of the walkways over the giant pond that houses many of the team hospitality buildings in the huge Shanghai paddock. It has not been the start either wanted to the 2025 campaign.
And the wait for the fun stuff – a racing chapter in this unique relationship – for now goes on too…
Read Also:
In this article
Alex Kalinauckas
Formula 1
Fernando Alonso
Gabriel Bortoleto
Be the first to know and subscribe for real-time news email updates on these topics
Fernando Alonso is not convinced reintroducing V10 engines to Formula 1 is the right direction for the sport.
The series will introduce new power unit regulations next year. Plans to replace the current V6 hybrids with new versions featuring more powerful kinetic energy were agreed three years ago.
However last month FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem raised the possibility of dropping the hybrids altogether and reintroducing conventional engines. The sport’s governing body is now looking into the possibility of switching to V10 engines as early as 2028.
Alonso, the last driver to win a world championship with a V10 engine 20 years ago, admitted the idea of returning to louder and lighter engines has clear appeal. “Obviously I love the V10 era and the V8 and the sound of those cars that we all miss,” he said.
But he doesn’t believe F1 should regress in terms of the technology used in its cars.
“We’re in a different world now,” he said. “Technology has evolved and we now have incredibly efficient engines that use about one-third of the fuel we used to.”
“We can’t just go against our time and our hybrid era,” he added. “We cannot forget how efficient the cars are now compared to the past. This is something very positive that we have.
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“It’s like saying we could run without the Halo and make the cars more dangerous and [create] more adrenaline for the fans. It doesn’t make sense.
“We move on from certain things, and what we have now is a very good Formula 1 and a very good moment for the sport. So it’s difficult to invent something; we could go into the unknown. It’s difficult to know.”
F1’s future engine format is “more a decision the top management will take – FOM, the FIA, and the manufacturers,” Alonso concluded. “As drivers, we just want to race the fastest cars possible, regardless of the engine. Maybe the fans have something to say as well.”
Ben Sulayem’s predecessor as FIA president Jean Todt was behind the introduction of the current power unit regulations 13 years ago. In 2017 Todt dismissed the idea of going back to V10 engines, predicting “many manufacturers would not support such a move.”
Honda and Audi will join F1 as engine manufacturers next year. Ford will also arrive in partnership with Red Bull’s new power unit division, while Cadillac intends to arrive at a later date. Renault, however, will cease producing F1 engines at the end of the year.
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Pictures: Alonso driving his championship-winning 2005 Renault in 2020
Fernando Alonso said he was lucky the brake failure which put him out of the race happened at a quick corner and not a slow one.
The Aston Martin driver retired in the pits after the problem struck. He revealed he problem struck as he approached the first corner.
“The brakes apparently were very hot since the beginning of the race,” he told the official F1 channel. “Then by lap three or lap four I went on the brakes in turn one and the pedal went just to the bottom of the chassis. That was super-scary.”
Turn one is one of the quickest corners on the track. Drivers only have to decelerate a little, which meant Alonso was able to bring the car under control.
“Lucky turn one is just a corner that you just downshift and go into the corner,” he said. “If that happens in turn 14 or whatever I think it could be a massive crash because I will take four or five cars in front of me out of the race.
“So, an unlucky situation, I think we were lucky today to not hit any car in front of us or whatever and now let’s try to understand what happened and try to see the first chequered flag in Japan.”
Alonso remains yet to finish a grand prix this year after crashing out of the Australian Grand Prix a week ago. He said the car’s performance was “a little bit better than in Australia, I think, in race pace, yesterday in the sprint.”
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His team mate Lance Stroll finished 12th after running a long opening stint on the hard tyre compound. He said he thought a points finish might be possible before his final stint.
“I thought the race was coming to us after the first stint,” he said. “But just the other medium [tyre, there was] a lot of graining and then I think the whole race ended up just becoming a one-stop for everybody, so that was that.”
“I think we have a lot to work on, for sure, if we want to finish in the points comfortably going forward,” he added.
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Which Formula 1 driver made the most of the Chinese Grand Prix weekend?
It’s time to give your verdict on which driver did the best with the equipment at their disposal over the last three days.
Review how each driver got on below and vote for who impressed you the most at Shanghai International Circuit.
Driver performance summary
| Become a RaceFans supporter and go ad-free
Vote for your driver of the weekend
Which driver do you think did the best job throughout the race weekend?
Who got the most out of their car in qualifying and the race? Who put their team mate in the shade?
Cast your vote below and explain why you chose the driver you picked in the comments.
Who was the best driver of the 2025 Chinese Grand Prix weekend?
No opinion (0%)
Gabriel Bortoleto (0%)
Nico Hulkenberg (0%)
Carlos Sainz Jnr (0%)
Alexander Albon (1%)
Yuki Tsunoda (0%)
Isack Hadjar (2%)
Oliver Bearman (11%)
Esteban Ocon (8%)
Pierre Gasly (0%)
Jack Doohan (1%)
Fernando Alonso (0%)
Lance Stroll (0%)
George Russell (11%)
Andrea Kimi Antonelli (1%)
Liam Lawson (0%)
Max Verstappen (12%)
Lewis Hamilton (4%)
Charles Leclerc (1%)
Oscar Piastri (47%)
Lando Norris (1%)
Total Voters: 85
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A RaceFans account is required in order to vote. If you do not have one, register an account here or read more about registering here When this poll is closed the result will be displayed instead of the voting form.
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