Max Verstappen completed the first free practice in Japan with the fastest time. The Dutchman managed to set a 1:30.056 on the soft tire, enough for first place. Sergio Pérez, Carlos Sainz and both Mercedes drivers completed the top five. Logan Sargeant caused even more headaches for his Williams team during the first session by becoming the first driver to raise a red flag this weekend after crashing into the barriers.
At the start of Japan’s first free practice, at 4:30 am Dutch time, Lance Stroll was the first on the track. The track temperature was 24 degrees at the start of the session, and most drivers therefore opted to use the medium C2 tires. A number of drivers opted for the hard tire, the C1, including the Red Bulls, Ferraris and Kevin Magnussen. Ayumu Iwasa made his Formula 1 debut at his home circuit, replacing RB driver Daniel Ricciardo during the first session at Suzuka.
A lot of traffic on the Suzuka track
It was immediately busy on the track, because all drivers except the Williams pair and Nico Hülkenberg chose to take to the track straight away, so the men were immediately affected by traffic. George Russell had to brake for a McLaren, while Charles Leclerc ended up behind an Alpine. It was Lando Norris who finally opened the ball, with a first fast time of 1:31.781.
Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez came close to the Brit’s time on the hard tire, on the mediums, and only had to give in to the McLaren driver by three hundredths. After thirteen minutes had passed, Max Verstappen also started his first flying lap, because the driver had to stay in the garage a little longer at the start of the session. While the world champion set a 1:32.635 on the hard tire, Fernando Alonso was at the front, setting exactly the same time as Norris’s still standing fastest lap.
Sargeant raises first red flag
With 37 minutes left on the clock, Verstappen again showed how much speed his RB20 had, and the Dutchman set the fastest time to date of 1:31.463. The three-time world champion managed to set the fast time on the hard tire, while his closest competition was still on the medium. Alexander Albon started his first fast lap halfway through the session, but the Williams car seemed unable to move forward, and the British Thai recorded the slowest time so far: 1:33.841.
A few laps later, Williams’ bad luck was complete, with Logan Sargeant causing the first red flag of the weekend. The American lost control of his FW46, went wide and crashed into the barriers. The small racing team still does not have a spare chassis and does not expect to have one until the Miami Grand Prix at the earliest, which again raises the question of how Williams will get through the rest of the weekend.
Verstappen starts
The Williams car was quickly removed from the track, and the Red Bulls were quickly at the end of the pit lane to be the first to drive back onto the track after the red flag. Verstappen and Pérez started the final minutes of the session on the red tape, just like most of the rest of the field. With 17 minutes left on the clock, the track became busy again, as all drivers tried to gather some information about the soft C3 tire. Verstappen immediately started well and drove a 1:30.056.
Pérez was able to follow his teammate reasonably well and drove to P2, almost two tenths behind Verstappen, while Leclerc did not get higher than P6. Hülkenberg, meanwhile, received a warning for crossing the white line when exiting the pit lane. Pérez had a moment, but managed to keep his RB20 on the track. Ultimately, no one came close to Verstappen’s time, and the Dutchman finished the first session at Suzuka fastest. Pérez, Sainz and both Mercedes drivers completed the top five. Zhou Guanyu and Kevin Magnussen are the bottom of the field.
Results of the first free practice Grand Prix of Japan 2024
