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It was a case of normal service that resumed on Sunday at Suzuka, where Max Verstappen took victory in the Japanese Grand Prix.
The Red Bull driver bounced back from the disappointment of being forced to retire early last time in Australia in emphatic fashion, finishing 12 seconds ahead of teammate Sergio Perez, while Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finished third.
It was another weekend to forget for Mercedes, whose lack of race pace was exposed and saw George Russell and Lewis Hamilton limp into ninth and twelfth place respectively.
Mail Sport was on hand all weekend in Japan and here are five things we learned…
Normal service resumed at the Japanese Grand Prix with victory for Red Bull’s Max Verstappen
The Dutchman won decisively but Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz impressed again
max is a machine
Sorry for the obviousness of this, but hear me out.
Verstappen is used to winning. A lot. So much so that it will not be easy for him to face the setback of falling short, as happened to Verstappen in Melbourne just over a fortnight ago.
Although that was due to a mechanical issue rather than driver error, a points-less race weekend in Australia would no doubt have been eating away at the Dutchman as he spent his week off skiing on the northern slopes of Japan.
Verstappen looked like a man on a mission in Japan, his concentration never straying from the job at hand despite the added pressure and commercial duties that come with a home race for the team’s engine supplier Honda.
Yes, it always helps to drive a car that currently operates in a different league than its competitors.
But this was an impressive display of mental resilience from Verstappen as he recovered in some style.
Verstappen showed his mental resilience to recover from having to retire in Australia
Ferrari is shooting…
Although Red Bull achieved its third one-two of the season at Suzuka, it should not go unnoticed that the difference between Red Bull and Ferrari in the constructors’ championship is only 21 points.
This is largely due to a huge improvement in the consistency of his racing performances this season.
It looks like it will be a pleasure to drive the car on the longer runs for Sainz and teammate Charles Leclerc, although there are certainly issues to resolve in qualifying. Leclerc, normally so strong at producing when it matters on a lap, was left scratching his head when he could only secure eighth place on the grid at Suzuka.
But overall, the first four races of 2024 have highlighted just how significant the improvements to Ferrari’s car have been over the winter. They are also timely steps forward, given that they currently have two drivers operating at the top of their game on race day.
Ferrari fires at the start of the season after important improvements during the winter
…And that’s an encouraging sign for Hamilton, too.
He didn’t much like the line of questioning when asked about it after the race, but Hamilton will surely get a little excited about how well things are going at the Scuderia, given that he’ll be sitting inside that Ferrari next season. .
The timing of the Brit’s switch to the Italian team looks like a smarter move by the day, as Mercedes builds toward another race weekend. There also doesn’t seem to be a simple solution to your various automotive conundrums.
Hamilton is a consummate professional and will be firmly focused on finishing the job at hand at Mercedes.
But at the same time, there must be a part of him starting to get a little dizzy from the fact that the days are ticking away until he’s sitting behind the wheel of that Ferrari.
Lewis Hamilton walked out of an interview after being asked a question about Ferrari
Hamilton is focused on his work at Mercedes, but his move to Ferrari seems smarter every day.
Someone captures Sainz
In Rio Ferdinand’s infamous words regarding Manchester United’s then caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: “Take out the contract, put it on the table, let him sign it, let him write whatever numbers he wants to put on there… … let him sign contract.
That’s exactly what team managers across the grid should do with Sainz after another excellent performance from the Spaniard in Japan, which followed his miraculous recovery from appendicitis to victory in Melbourne.
The 2024 season only has four races, but now is the time for bosses to pull out all the stops and convince Sainz that his project is worth embarking on. He is a downright brilliant and, some would say, smooth operator.
Carlos Sainz backed up his victory in Melbourne with another impressive performance in Japan
The team managers should try to convince Sainz that their project is worth participating in.
Woe to Williams!
Spare a thought for the good folks at the Williams garage, who must have already racked up some serious overtime this season.
In Australia, the team was only able to race one car after Alex Albon suffered serious damage to his chassis in an accident. With no spare parts available, it was Albon, somewhat controversially, who was selected to compete in the race while driving teammate Logan Sargeant’s car.
So there must have been some hearts in mouths when Sargeant’s car flew into the tire wall on his first lap in Thursday practice.
Fortunately, there was no damage to the chassis and that replacement will not arrive until the Miami Grand Prix in a month.
Williams’ Alex Albon (right) crashed at Suzuka after contact with Daniel Ricciardo (left)
But soon after, the weekend took a turn for the worse when Albon crashed on the first lap of the race after contact with Daniel Ricciardo.
Team principal James Vowles could use a weekend where both drivers keep their cars on track.
