Glorified Procession
A recap of the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix
I’ll be honest: part of the reason why this recap took so long—despite it being shorter than the average Omakase Formula F1 grand prix recap—is because I wasn’t even sure there there was enough from the Japanese Grand Prix worth recapping at all.
Suzuka has offered a long list of legendary races. But if you tuned in for the very first time expecting something like Kimi Räikkönen’s miracle drive in 2005, I’m truly sorry.
For only the fourth time in F1’s 75-year history, the top 6 finished a grand prix in the exact same positions they started in. Overtaking was almost nonexistent, and there was no weather-induced chaos either. It was less of a race and more of a glorified procession.
None of this is to say F1 has outgrown Suzuka. The problem we saw last week is one we’re likely to see at multiple races the rest of the season. Part of that is down to teams mastering the current car regulations, something which will change once the new rules arrive in 2026 and teams will have to relearn everything once again. Another factor is the tires, with the hard tires specifically offering both extended durability and solid performance. This meant that a one-stop strategy was enough on race day, resulting in a Grand Prix that, in hindsight, was decided during Saturday’s qualifying session.
Having said all of that, I was determined when I started writing these F1 race recaps to make sure every team was covered in some way. The headlines are always dominated by the top teams, but it would be a mistake to completely ignore what’s happening on the rest of the grid. So while there might not be a lot to talk about for this race, I’ve tried my best to make sure that each team has at least one major takeaway from what was an objectively uneventful race.
And yes, by “each team” I do mean each team. Even Sauber.
Verstappen’s epic qualifying seals victory for Red Bull.
Max Verstappen: 1st (Qualified 1st)
Yuki Tsunoda: 12th (Qualified 14th)
In a season that’s been dominated by talk of an intra-team title fight at McLaren, Verstappen proved at Suzuka why he’s the four-time defending champion.
Verstappen’s picture-perfect lap allowed him to qualify 0.012 seconds ahead of Lando Norris. While fine margins like that aren’t all that uncommon in F1, few could have predicted Verstappen snatching pole position off of McLaren after Shanghai. On a weekend where qualifying was paramount (clear air is king!), that hundredth of a second was what ultimately determined who won and lost the race.
The team drama surrounding Red Bull also amplified just how incredible Verstappen’s qualifying feat was. The carousel surrounding Red Bull’s second seat is a constant reminder of how difficult Red Bull’s car is to handle, with Tsunoda’s debut performance for the senior Red Bull team being only the latest chapter of that story. Qualifying behind the man he replaced (Liam Lawson was one spot ahead) was certainly not the result Tsunoda or Red Bull wanted to see, though Tsunoda at least managed to wrangle enough pace from the car to finish above where he started. Most importantly, he finished the race ahead of Lawson. It may have been a debut to largely forget, but there were enough positive signs from both qualifying and the race to suggest the driver swap is on track to be an upgrade.
Make no mistake: Tsunoda—and Lawson for that matter—aren’t slouches. Verstappen is just that incredible.
McLaren teach a masterclass…in disastrous strategy.
Lando Norris: 2nd (Qualified 2nd)
Oscar Piastri: 3rd (Qualified 3rd)
There was a clear way for McLaren to try and snatch victory from Red Bull. And no, I’m not talking about whether McLaren should have tried to swap positions towards the end of the race. For what it’s worth, I will say that in my opinion McLaren were right not to swap positions. Yes, Piastri was slightly quicker towards the end. But race data showed Norris was slightly faster across the entire race, and in all likelihood the minuscule pace advantage Piastri had at the end wouldn’t have been enough to catch or overtake Verstappen. And had there somehow been a late flag or Safety Car, the consequences of a failed position swap with no re-swap would have been ugly.
The way for McLaren to at least try and snatch victory was in the pit stop strategy. With Verstappen isolated at the front and two capable drivers in Norris and Piastri behind the wheel of an objectively better car, McLaren could have tried a pincer move on Verstappen. What that essentially means is they could pit one car early to undercut Verstappen and pit the other car late to overcut Verstappen. The diverging strategies would force Red Bull to make a decision on who to have Verstappen cover. After all, one car couldn’t possibly cover two cars, even if that car was being driven by one of the sport’s all-time greats.
But McLaren’s strategy department have carved out quite the reputation for disastrous decision-making over the past year, and what happened at Suzuka made it appear like they were quite happy for things to stay that way.
Boxing Piastri early was one thing. But instead of having Norris stay out, they chose to have him come in to the pits immediately after. And on the same lap as Verstappen.
It was a decision that made absolutely no sense. Suzuka was an obvious one-stop race, so having the two lead cars come in on the same lap meant the race would be essentially won by whichever pit crew had a great or poor day. Those mistakes are so rare at this level that there was no way any team would bank on them as a race-winning strategy. Yet that’s exactly what it looked like McLaren did.
The gamble worked about as well as you would imagine. While Norris was able to come to the pit lane exit side-by-side with Verstappen, the lack of room meant that he ended up on the grass coming back out onto the track, sealing Verstappen’s victory. So while you could say Verstappen proved one car could battle two and come out victorious, the reality is he does owe part of his improbable victory to McLaren themselves.
Ferrari steady the ship.
Charles Leclerc: 4th (Qualified 4th)
Lewis Hamilton: 7th (Qualified 8th)
Ferrari finally got a decent points haul this season, more than doubling their total points from the first two weeks to move ahead of Williams in the Constructors’ Championship. But the solid result also underscores just how much catching up Ferrari have to do. The 18 points they scored in Suzuka were still only equal to the amount Mercedes scored. McLaren scored 33 points, and Red Bull still managed 25 points thanks to Verstappen.
The only way for Ferrari to make up their points deficit to the top 3 teams is by dominating the entire grid. While the season is still young, the traffic jam at the top means it’s a lot easier said than done. And that’s before we get to the possibility it might never happen at all.
Antonelli makes history with Mercedes.
George Russell: 5th (Qualified 5th)
Kimi Antonelli: 6th (Qualified 6th)
Kimi Antonelli made F1 history by becoming the youngest driver to lead a grand prix and have the fastest lap of a race. But what will arguably please Mercedes the most is the fact Antonelli was able to come close to matching Russell’s pace. Having two capable drivers who are able to perform every week is important—just ask Red Bull! With Antonelli delivering on his potential this early on in his career, the door is open for Mercedes to make waves the rest of the season and beyond so long as their car stays good.
At Racing Bulls, Hadjar announces himself on the F1 stage.
Isack Hadjar: 8th (Qualified 7th)
Liam Lawson: 17th (Qualified 13th)
Hadjar scored his first points in F1 at Suzuka, and he deserves all the credit for keeping a midfield car competitive across an entire race in only his third Grand Prix. It also probably helped that the clear one-stop strategy in Japan meant there was no room for Racing Bulls to try any McLaren-esque strategical sorcery (though that obviously didn’t stop McLaren themselves).
As for Lawson, it would be harsh to judge his first performance after returning to his former team. It might not look good that he got outclassed by his less-experienced teammate, but Lawson deserves to be cut some slack after experiencing what might be the harshest demotion in F1 history.
Williams keep scoring points.
Alex Albon: 9th (Qualified 9th)
Carlos Sainz: 14th (Qualified 15th)
Albon scoring points for a third straight week was huge for Williams. While varying degrees of chaotic racing in Australia and China allowed them to score points in those races, the lack of any chaos in Suzuka meant that we finally got a proper look at how the cars stack up against each other. That the team were still able to leave Japan with points shows that they will be regular challengers for the final points positions the rest of the season.
Haas solidify their standing in the midfield.
Ollie Bearman: 10th (Qualified 10th)
Esteban Ocon: 18th (Qualified 18th)
Like Williams, Haas’ points so far this season have also come via chaos. Bearman’s points finish at Suzuka will go a long way in reassuring the team that their nightmare start to the season in Australia is truly in the rearview mirror now. Scoring points in Japan will also mean a lot for the team: while Haas are technically an American team (though things are much more complicated in reality), the technical partnership they signed with Toyota last year means Japan is a home race of sorts for them now, and it’s always nice to see a team perform well at home.
Aston Martin receive a damning verdict.
Fernando Alonso: 11th (Qualified 12th)
Lance Stroll: 20th (Qualified 20th)
You could argue Aston Martin should be the most worried team on the grid after Suzuka. The failure to score points in Japan—not to mention look competitive—should cause panic within the team. Last year, Aston Martin were solidly the 5th best team on the grid. They were in no man’s land: well behind McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes, but comfortably ahead of the rest of the grid. That they’re now consistently finishing behind multiple teams they beat last year is bad enough on its own, but the new regulations next year arguably make their current situation even more dire. It’s completely plausible the team would rather focus on 2026 than try and pour money into saving 2025. And while I wouldn’t fault them for doing that, it would condemn the current season to hell. If that ends up being the case, expect a lot more weekends like this one in Aston’s future.
Alpine’s race week dominated by Doohan’s crash in practice.
Pierre Gasly: 13th (Qualified 11th)
Jack Doohan: 15th (Qualified 19th)
The main story surrounding Alpine in Japan was the massive crash Doohan had at Turn 1 during the second free practice session. His car spun out after he failed to manually close the DRS, which sparked debate over whether the DRS should be automatically operated. But the more interesting part of this incident was the story that circulated saying Doohan’s mistake wasn’t accidental, but rather an ill-advised attempt to recreate a trick he’d tried in the simulator. In my opinion, the crash is further proof Doohan really is in the hot seat behind-the-scenes: if he felt his spot was secure, there would be no need to try these types of tricks in the hopes of impressing the team bosses.
That being said, Doohan deserves credit for not only recovering in time for the race, but also being the only driver on the grid to gain more than two positions across the entire race. Such a result would normally quell any chatter about Doohan’s future (at least temporarily). But Alpine still haven’t scored any points this season, meaning the spotlight is squarely on Doohan’s crash instead.
No, Sauber didn’t score points this race.
Nico Hülkenberg: 16th (Qualified 16th)
Gabriel Bortoleto: 19th (Qualified 17th)
But at least they’ll always have the 6 points from Australia!