Kate On Wheels

Konnichiwa (hello) from Japan, where the excitement was as fleeting as Sakura season.

There were two moments across the whole weekend that shaped the outcome of the Japanese Grand Prix.

Max’s Magical Lap

Max Verstappen put the perfect lap together in Q3 to secure pole position.

That lap, of 1m 26.983s, was also the fastest in Suzuka history.

Unfortunately, his new team mate at Red Bull, Yuki Tsunoda, was unable to get the best out of the car, qualifying 14^th.

Race Highlight (singular!)

The moment that decided the race occurred as Max Verstappen and Lando Norris pitted at the same time. Verstappen was leading and so came into the pits slightly ahead of Norris. Then, drama! Verstappen’s wheel nut got stuck, costing him precious time. That, combined with a super-speedy stop by Mclaren, led to both drivers exiting the pits at the same time – side by side.

As Mclaren won the Constructor’s title last season, their pit garage is at the end of the pit lane. This would usually be to their advantage, but this time it actually put Verstappen in a more favourable road position, requiring Norris to merge across.

There is no obligation for Verstappen to make room for Norris, so he was not penalised when the Mclaren drove off-road before slotting in behind the Red Bull. Norris did well to keep it in a straight line and not end up in the barrier, with both drivers joking post-race about him mowing the grass.

An unsafe release might have been queried, however if the Red Bull stop had been any slower they would have to have held Verstappen in his box for even longer, to avoid a unsafe release with Leclerc’s Ferrari.

Strategy Needed

It could be argued that the Mclarens were the fastest cars, but Max’s magical lap in qualifying gave him two big advantages – pole position (obviously!) and also, crucially, clean air.

This illustrates what Formula 1 fans know – that speed alone is not enough. You also need skill, strategy, and quite often, luck. From a fan’s point of view, it felt like Mclaren didn’t have the strategy to compete with Red Bull today. The luck so nearly went their way, but not quite.

Mclaren also couldn’t rely on their tyre management skills as the new surface at Suzuka menas there was low tyre degradation, neutralising the race from that point of view.

Antonelli Sets Two Records

I love a slightly obscure stat or record, and this time the honour goes to Kimi Antonelli. He became the youngest driver to lead a Grand Prix, and the youngest to get the fastest lap of the race (1m 30:965s)

At the age of 18 years and 224 days, the Mercedes driver went long on his first stint (31 laps), leading the race for 10 laps as others around him pitted.

“It was also a nice feeling to lead the race for a few laps and become the youngest driver in F1 history to have done so. The next goal is to do that on the only lap that matters: the final one,” he said.

The previous record holder for the fastest lap was Max Verstappen in Brazil in 2016 at the age of 19 years and 44 days.

So it’s Sayonara (goodbye) from Japan and on to Bahrain!

Facts and Figures:

Podium:                    1^st Verstappen (Red Bull), 2^nd Norris (Mclaren), 3^rd Piastri (Mclaren)

Retirements:             0

Virtual safety cars:   0

Full safety cars:        0

Fastest lap:               Antonelli 1:30:965

Next race: Bahrain – 11^th – 13^th April 2025