Verstappen with Suzuka pole in his sights after dry-run blast
Verstappen with Suzuka pole in his sights after dry-run blast
Max Verstappen lit up Suzuka as F1's reigning champion teed himself up for pole position ahead of Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix.
The Red Bull posted a superb lap time of one minute 30.671secs to finish three-tenths of a second quicker than Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, with the Spaniard closely followed by team-mate Charles Leclerc.
With wet conditions dominating Friday practice on F1's return to Japan after a three-year absence, there was an obvious stampede to take to a dry track for the final hour-long session.
Across the 20 drivers, all three compounds were used as different run plans came to the fore, with Verstappen initially opting for the softs and setting a lap of 1:32.050s, a remarkable 1.2s clear of Perez on the same tyre in the early exchanges.
That was in stark contrast to Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton, whose initial laps were high-fuel runs on the hard rubber, with the seven-time F1 champion 4.546s off the pace.
It was not until 26 minutes into the session and after 11 laps on the hard compound that Hamilton switched to the softs, with his opening foray also 1.2s adrift.
Immediately behind him, team-mate George Russell's initial soft-tyre run saw him go second quickest, just under a second behind Verstappen.
It was not until Sainz took to the track a few minutes later that we saw the first of the low-fuel qualifying simulation runs, with the Spanish driver almost a second quicker than Verstappen.
Leclerc soon made it a Ferrari one-two, only for Verstappen to split the pair, 0.351s down, albeit on the medium tyre to further underline the pace of his RB18.
When Verstappen switched again to the soft tyre on low fuel, he set the benchmark and made him the man to beat in qualifying.
Alpine's Fernando Alonso fared superbly as the two-time champion was fourth on the timesheet, 0.649s down followed by Red Bull's Sergio Perez and then Russell and Hamilton.
McLaren's Lando Norris, Esteban Ocon in his Alpine and Aston Martin's Lance Stroll rounded out the top 10, with the Canadian 1.167s behind.
In a rebuilt Haas, following his crash at the end of second practice, Mick Schumacher was 16th quickest just behind team-mate Kevin Magnussen.
Bizarrely, AlphaTauri's Pierre Gasly, confirmed as joining Alpine for next season, was slowest, 2.210s adrift.
Japanese Grand Prix final practice results
1. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] 1:30.671s
2. Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] +0.294s
3. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] +0.309s
4. Fernando Alonso [Alpine] +0.649s
5. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] +0.843s
6. George Russell [Mercedes] +0.859s
7. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] +0.918s
8. Lando Norris [McLaren] +1.076s
9. Esteban Ocon [Alpine] +1.079s
10. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] +1.167s
11. Daniel Ricciardo [McLaren] +1.189s
12. Alexander Albon [Williams] +1.275s
13. Valtteri Bottas [Alfa Romeo] +1.300s
14. Sebastian Vettel [Aston Martin] +1.551s
15. Kevin Magnussen [Haas] +1.619s
16. Mick Schumacher [Haas] +1.695s
17. Yuki Tsunoda [AlphaTauri] +1.706s
18. Zhou Guanyu [Alfa Romeo] +1.714s
19. Nicholas Latifi [Williams] +2.197s
20. Pierre Gasly [AlphaTauri] +2.210s
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Hamilton dealt China blow after major FIA decision as Ricciardo given huge Horner warning - GPFans F1 Recap
- 2 hours ago
F1 team unveil star-studded lineup in China
- 3 hours ago
F1 Qualifying Today: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 start times, schedule and TV
- Yesterday 22:27
Horner delivers threat to Ricciardo over Red Bull pressure
- Yesterday 21:57
F1 Sprint Race Today: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 start times, schedule and TV
- Yesterday 21:27
Wolff left FUMING with Mercedes despite amazing Hamilton lap
- Yesterday 20:57
Related news
NIGHTMARE Japanese GP may bite F1 team later this season
EMBARRASSING Hamilton crash caught on camera at Suzuka
‘Ricciardo is so finished’ - Pressure mounts on RB star after BIG Japanese GP crash
FIA reveal OFFICIAL verdict on Ricciardo Japanese GP crash
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860