Max Verstappen followed up his sensational qualifying performance with victory at the Japanese Grand Prix to close the gap on championship leader Lando Norris to one point.
The race started with Verstappen keeping his lead into Turn 1 ahead of McLaren duo Norris and Oscar Piastri. The early stages featured a clean start with minimal changes among the frontrunners. Verstappen built a crucial one-second gap to break DRS range, skilfully managing his medium tires while the McLaren duo tried to close the gap.
The pivotal moment came during the first round of pit stops when Verstappen and Norris entered the pit lane together. A slightly slow stop for Verstappen created a dramatic side-by-side battle on pit exit, forcing Norris onto the grass when the Dutchman held his line.
From there, Verstappen controlled the pace brilliantly. The top three finished as they started, with Charles Leclerc a distant fourth ahead of George Russell. Further back, Kimi Antonelli impressed in his Mercedes, setting the fastest lap of the race, while home favorite Yuki Tsunoda fought through to a respectable P12 in his first race for Red Bull.
In a race where all 20 starters made it to the checkered flag, Verstappen’s flawless drive under pressure demonstrated why he remains the benchmark in Formula One, even as McLaren’s continued strong pace suggests they remain the team to beat.
The Athletic’s experts Luke Smith (from Suzuka) and Madeline Coleman break down the battle at Suzuka Circuit
Verstappen and Norris have first ‘moment’ of the season
As the 2024 season unfolded, close battles began occurring between Verstappen and Norris. Their scrap in Austria ended in contact between the Red Bull and McLaren drivers. Fast forward a few months, Norris tried to pass Verstappen numerous times in Austin and received a penalty when he finally overtook the Dutchman, after gaining the position on track. A week after that, Verstappen was penalized for their battles during the Mexico City GP.
Only eight points separated Norris and Verstappen coming into the Japanese GP weekend, the McLaren driver in the lead after winning the season opener and finishing second in China. It’s natural to assume another ‘moment’ would develop eventually this season, given the thin margins. Only this time, the close battle came at the pit exit.
Verstappen was leading the race, with Norris close behind him in second, when they both pitted at the end of Lap 21. It became a mad dash to the pit exit, and the Briton tried to nose his way alongside the Red Bull to battle for position, only to end up in the grass. Norris claimed on the radio that Verstappen forced him off — Verstappen radioed, “He drove himself into the grass.”
The stewards noted the moment, but no further investigation was taken. With Verstappen taking the win and Norris finishing second, the gap closes to one point.
Madeline Coleman
Kimi Antonelli sets new F1 records after Suzuka turnaround
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli admitted on Saturday that he was “very lost” earlier in the Suzuka weekend as he struggled to find his rhythm around one of the toughest tracks on the calendar.
But a series of breakthroughs with both the setup on his Mercedes car plus his own driving paved the way for him to continue his excellent start to life in F1 — and set a couple of new records in the process.
Kimi Antonelli twice made history in Suzuka (Philip Fong/AFP via Getty Images)
Antonelli’s long first stint on the medium tires allowed him to shuffle through to the lead of the race on Lap 22 after the cars ahead of him all came in. His eight-lap stint at the head of the field saw the Italian become F1’s youngest race leader at 18 years and 225 days, breaking Verstappen’s record set at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix by just three days.
Thanks to his tire advantage for the second stint, Antonelli also became the youngest driver in F1 history to set the fastest lap in a grand prix, this time by a more comfortable margin. The previous holder, again Verstappen, was 19 years and 44 days old when he set the fastest lap at the 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix.
It’s rare for Verstappen to lose a ‘youngest’ driver record, given his debut at the age of 17 led to the FIA introducing a new minimum age limit of 18. Antonelli became F1’s second-youngest points scorer and third-youngest starter in Australia, but has now claimed two records outright.
Antonelli’s fresher tires for the final stint weren’t quite enough to catch teammate George Russell in fifth, but sixth place was another decent return, giving him points in each of his opening three grands prix. A very solid start to life in F1 indeed.
Luke Smith
A frustrating Red Bull debut for Yuki Tsunoda
From the moment that Yuki Tsunoda was knocked out in Q2 on Saturday after he struggled to get his tires warmed up, leaving him 14th for the start of the race, his Red Bull debut was always going to be tough.
He did well to save a snap on the first lap at the esses before picking off Liam Lawson — the driver whose seat he took — at Spoon. But Tsunoda then spent the entirety of the first stint toiling behind Pierre Gasly’s Alpine, only getting ahead after pitting one lap earlier and making the best of the undercut.
Tsunoda then spent the second stint starting at the rear wing of Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin, again toiling in the dirty air. Suzuka is a track with so many medium- and high-speed corners that it is hard to really get close enough to attempt a move without a big advantage. He crossed the line in 12th place, missing out on points.
Tsunoda came into the weekend with fairly calm expectations, saying that a Q3 appearance and points return would be a good start. Right until Q2 on Saturday, it looked well within his reach, and he’s been far closer to Verstappen all weekend than Lawson ever got through the opening two.
There may not have been any points to show for it, nor was there the kind of fight through the field that the Red Bull could produce when at its dominant best. But there are definite positives for Tsunoda to take before going to Bahrain next week.
Luke Smith
(Top photo: Toshifumi Kitamura /AFP via Getty Images)