Shortly after the end of the race at the Suzuka circuit, Formula 1 journalist Peter Windsor shared his view on how the race went. The Brit was not too enthusiastic. By his own admission, he had never seen a race like this on the Japanese circuit before. Windsor had a few things to say about Mercedes’ performance in particular.
What Windsor was pleased with was Verstappen’s performance. The Dutchman also crossed the line first in Suzuka. “He handles the car in a controlled manner and that says everything about how he drove today,” says the Brit.
Mercedes leaves much to be desired
“It was not an impressive day for Mercedes at all,” says Windsor. ‘They were the only ones who chose to run with different tires after the restart. They went from medium tires to hard tires. That was also to no avail. They just weren’t very good.’ Windsor wonders whether Mercedes should have driven with a different wing position. ‘They were surprisingly fast on the straight line, but they didn’t need that. More downforce, yes.’
The Briton says that he did not recognize fellow countryman Lewis Hamilton during the race. Windsor found it unbelievable that Hamilton was allowed to pass by teammate Russell at one point. ‘It was out of character for Hamilton to do that. Especially considering how reluctant he has been to do something like this in the past. It was a bit uncomfortable to watch,” Windsor confessed.
Although Mercedes itself says it will leave Suzuka with new insights, Windsor finds that difficult to imagine. ‘It was a very sloppy day for Mercedes, really. It was as if they hadn’t gotten any answers. I also think that is true. If they had had those answers, they would have performed better. Then they would not have been defeated by McLaren or by Aston Martin. It’s sad. I’ve never seen Hamilton like this before.’
Verstappen once again supreme
All in all, Windsor doesn’t really seem to be talking about the race in Japan. ‘I thought it was a really strange day, a bizarre day. There were a lot of overtakes, which is fine in itself.’ However, the tire degradation was very noticeable, according to the Brit. ‘What this means is that the drivers will defend less.’ For example, Windsor refers to Norris who let Pérez pass. ‘Why wouldn’t you defend the inside anymore? The fact that Norris passed Hamilton must have hurt for Mercedes.’
In addition to his many criticisms, Windsor has full praise for Verstappen’s performance during the race. ‘He is so good in the first sector. He positions the car well, he is good on the esses.’ After the first two free practice sessions on Friday, Windsor already stated that Verstappen’s driving style was ‘patient’ and ‘controlled’. He sticks to that. ‘It makes it look like the car is floating around the Suzuka circuit. He handles the car in a controlled manner and that says everything about how he drove today. Even on his fastest lap, it was hard to see that he was on the limit.’
“Red Bull was fantastic again today,” Windsor concluded. The Brit is not too worried about the future of second driver Pérez. “As long as he keeps quiet, I think he is in a good position to keep his seat in 2025.”
