F1 Japanese Grand Prix: Mercedes F1 stunned after McLaren lead

Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, McLaren, China, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

Japanese Grand Prix

Mercedes F1 stunned after McLaren lead Japanese Grand Prix

The third race of the season kicks off TODAY

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 29 March 2026 07:35

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Oscar Piastri made a stunning start to the Japanese Grand Prix, beating both Mercedes cars off the line to lead the race into turn one.

George Russell and Kimi Antonelli started from first and second after Saturday's qualifying session, but found themselves down in fourth and sixth by the end of lap one, with Russell ahead of pole sitter Antonelli, as cars flew by them at the start of the race.

Ferrari's Charles Leclerc trailed Piastri right at the front, while 2025 world champion Lando Norris rounded out the top three after lap one.

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2026's starts so far have seen some huge variation, and the Japanese GP was no different, although this time it was McLaren making use of Mercedes' problems rather than Ferrari, with the usually fast-starting Lewis Hamilton only down in fifth.

Antonelli and Russell began reclaiming their positions as the laps went by, with Russell making his way up to second by the end of lap three, while Antonelli was left trying to get himself back into podium contention.

Four-time world champion Max Verstappen made his way up from 11th to eighth in the first few laps.

Antonelli's starts hampering title ambitions

The hugely talented Antonelli is hoping to challenge his team-mate Russell for the drivers' championship this year, but his starts have left much to be desired.

The reason why Russell is four points ahead of Antonelli heading into this weekend was because of Antonelli's poor start in the Chinese GP sprint race, which meant he could only finish down in fifth.

And the start in Japan was no different. Antonelli was down in sixth after one corner, not something you want to be saying when starting from pole position.

It's going to be a tall order to finish ahead of his Mercedes team-mate now, which will be a huge disappointment for Antonelli given the young Italian outclassed Russell during qualifying.

F1 Japanese Grand Prix