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Formula 1 Japanese GP

F1 Japanese GP Live Commentary and Updates - FP1 & FP2

Friday's action from the 16th round of the 2023 Formula 1 season

Suzuka ferris wheel

Formula 1 arrives in Japan with Red Bull on the verge of clinching the constructors' title despite the setback of Singapore one week ago. 

Carlos Sainz's victory under the Marina Bay lights marked the first non-Red Bull race win of the season, but Ferrari must outscore Red Bull by more than 24 points to remain in the championship fight beyond this weekend. 

If Mercedes, the team currently second, outscore Red Bull at all, the battle will carryover into Qatar. 

Japanese GP first practice starts at 3:30am BST followed by second practice at 7:00am BST.

Live Standings

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Summary

  • Summary
    • Japanese GP second practice ended early as Gasly crashes at Degner 2
    • Verstappen quickest after soft tyre runs from Leclerc and Norris
    • Ferrari running new car floor, Red Bull trying out car floor it debuted in Singapore
    • F1 teams also testing Pirelli prototype tyres
    • Verstappen topped FP1 by over six-tenths from Sainz
  • Leaderboard
    1. Verstappen, Red Bull
    2. Leclerc, Ferrari
    3. Norris, McLaren
    4. Sainz, Ferrari
    5. Russell, Mercedes
    6. Alonso, Aston Martin
    7. Albon, Williams
    8. Piastri, McLaren
    9. Perez, Red Bull
    10. Bottas, Alfa Romeo

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And with that, it's time to bid farewell until the early hours of Saturday. FP3 begins at 3:30am BST and qualifying is at 7am BST. Until then, you can catch up with all the FP2 action here! 

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/f1-japanese-gp-fp2-report/10523431/
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

The battle to reach Q3 is going to be intriguing to watch, with very little separating Russell in P5 to Hamilton in P14. Track position will be crucial in qualifying, with time almost certain to be gained the later you can set your time.
Checkered flag
So Verstappen is the fastest driver from Leclerc, Norris and Sainz.
The replay shows he just missed his braking point into the corner, locked up and scraped lazily along the wall, doing significant damage to the left-hand side of his Alpine.
Hands on their head in the garage as Gasly climbs out of the car.
With two minutes remaining in the session, the action will not be resumed.
Red flag
And that's a red flag.
Crash
Gasly has crashed heavily at Degner 2.
There appears to be a bit of pannel lift on Leclerc's Ferrari, with this visible just below his number. That's not something you would want to fly off.
Williams team principal James Vowles has revealed that tyre degradation is higher than expected with the warmer temperatures. Could we see some strategy variance on Sunday?
Good news for Alfa Romeo and Zhou, as the Chinese driver appears ready to leave the garage after some rapid repairs.
A big moment for Sargeant who runs right across the kerb at Degner 2. Williams will want to check the floor for damage after sparks were sent flying.
Problems for Zhou. It looks like he has a hydraulic leak that is affecting his brakes. With 10 minutes left on the clock, that is quite possibly his session over. He is 16th fastest.
Showing the difference in pace between qualifying and the long runs, drivers are now lapping between five and six seconds off their ultimate pace.
Looking into the times, Verstappen is the fastest man in sector one, Leclerc in sector two and, unexpectedly, Sargeant is the pacesetter in the final sector.
Off with the softs for certain now. Testing, medium and even the hard compounds are now on display.
From second-last, Hamilton climbs but only to P14 with his latest soft tyre effort. Tonight's debrief will likely run late into the night for Mercedes.
24 minutes remain and the testing tyres are beginning to appear once more. Get ready for the long runs. The hot laps appear to now be largely in the can.
Stopwatch
A 1:30.688s! That is a real statement of intent from Verstappen! 0.320s clear of the rest!
Verstappen is on his way to issue his repost. Green and purple micro-sectors are lighting up the timing screen next to his name.
Stopwatch
Leclerc improves in sector one, goes purple in sector two, and green in the final sector! 

A 1:31.008s puts him 0.144s ahead of Norris. Perez goes P6 and is seven-tenths off the pace.
And P4 for Piastri. Remember, this is his first visit to Suzuka.
The soft tyre runs are in full flow, as Albon leaps to P3 with a 1:31.555s.
Stopwatch
We have a new pace-setter. McLaren looked strong in FP1 and Norris has shown this once more with a 1:31.152s, putting him two-tenths clear at the top.
Leclerc's earlier run on medium tyres is looking ever-more impressive. He currently sits in P2 and is just 0.3s off Verstappen.
Stopwatch
On softs too, Hamilton falls 0.868s shy of Verstappen. The pace of Singapore has yet to be rediscovered by Mercedes at Suzuka.
Verstappen goes again and misses his previous benchmark by just 0.02s.
Stopwatch
P3 and 0.677s off Verstappen for Russell. There are no smiles on Mercedes faces at that outcome.
Here we go - soft tyres for Russell so we will finally get a reference for where Mercedes stack up.
After completing only one hot lap, Verstappen has only just returned to the track.
And a very near-miss for Magnussen as he comes across Sainz dawdling on the racing line at the first two corners and is forced to take avoiding action. A sarcastic thumbs up from the Dane and on they went.
A moment for Tsunoda at the hairpin, as he runs wide and is forced to catch a handful of oversteer.
It must be said, after the traffic chaos of Singapore, the drivers are - so far - behaving themselves when it comes to allowing faster cars through.
On mediums, Norris goes second-fastest, 0.7s off Verstappen.
Stopwatch
Here comes Verstappen's first effort. Naturally, a lot of green microsectors but a handful of purple overall bests. 

And to the top he goes with a 1:31.377s - 1.6s faster than anyone else, although he is the first man on soft tyres.
Quote
"Is my floor ok?" asks Hamilton after running across the harsh Suzuka kerbs. 

"We'll take a look," is the calm response from the pitwall.

By: Autosport Staff

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