Japanese Grand Prix: Daniel Ricciardo in HUGE crash with F1 rival as Suzuka race red-flagged

Daniel Ricciardo, VCARB, Visa, RB, Japan, 2024 — Photo: © IMAGO

Japanese Grand Prix

Ricciardo in HUGE smash with F1 rival as Japanese GP red-flagged

It was a dramatic start to the Japanese Grand Prix

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 7 April 2024 07:38 Updated: 11:04

The Japanese Grand Prix was red-flagged on the first lap following a huge crash between two Formula 1 drivers.

Alex Albon slammed into the barriers having got onto the grass after being tagged by the Visa Cash App RB of Daniel Ricciardo.

Article continues under video

Both drivers were left out of the race, but fortunately were seen to emerge from the cars without any problems - while a big repair job on the tyre barriers was needed before the race could get restarted.

The dramatic start led to a 20-minute delay to the race in Suzuka, and the incident was noted by race stewards.

Daniel Ricciardo's miserable start to 2024 continued

Alex Albon crashed out of the race in Japan

Ricciardo out of Japanese Grand Prix

Heading into turn two, Ricciardo was fighting with a plethora of cars following a poor start, and did not see Albon on his right-hand side. The pair touched wheels, sending the Williams spiralling into the barriers alongside Ricciardo.

It continues Ricciardo's poor start to the season, in which he is yet to score a point and has been outperformed by team-mate Yuki Tsunoda.

Tsunoda brilliantly qualified up in ninth for his home race, while Ricciardo could not make it into Q3, and the Australian will now not have the chance to get past his team-mate during the race.

As for Albon, it makes for his second huge smash in consecutive race weekends, following a shunt during Australian GP practice, which ruined his car and the weekend of team-mate Logan Sargeant.