Verstappen edges out Perez for Suzuka pole as Norris takes third

Max Verstappen edged out Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez to claim pole position at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Verstappen looked to be cruising towards pole having dominated the first two parts of the session, but an inspired final flying lap from Perez saw the Mexican finish just 0.066s back from his team-mate’s pole time of 1:28.197.

McLaren’s Lando Norris produced a superb lap to take third ahead of Australian Grand Prix winner Carlos Sainz for Ferrari, with both clearly outpacing their team-mates as Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc finished sixth and eighth respectively.

Fernando Alonso was fifth for Aston Martin, highlighting the poor performance of his team-mate Lance Stroll, who will start from P16 after making a shock Q1 exit.

Mercedes were once more unable to reproduce promising practice pace as Lewis Hamilton was seventh, with the only consolation for the seven-time world champion being that he outqualified team-mate George Russell for the first time this season.

Mercedes were fined €5,000 for unsafely releasing Russell into the path of Piastri in the pit lane during Q1.

Yuki Tsunoda thrilled his home crowd by edging out RB team-mate Daniel Ricciardo to reach the final part of qualifying, but was unable to make an impression in Q3 and will start from 10th.

Perez finds pace to push Verstappen

Having seen a nine-race winning streak end as a brake failure caused him to retire in Australia two weeks ago, Verstappen has appeared to be on a mission to restore his dominance at a track he has won at for each of the last two years.

The Dutchman, chasing a fourth successive world championship, had comfortably topped the first and third practice sessions either side of an unrepresentative wet Practice Two, and followed that up by cruising to the top of the timesheet in Q1 and Q2.

The dominance continued during the first runs of Q3, with Verstappen 0.249s clear of Norris, with Perez more than a tenth further back in third.

However, Perez produced one of his best qualifying laps for a long time to come up just short of his team-mate’s pole time on the second run, before Verstappen marginally improved himself to ensure he had two times good enough for top spot.

“It was quite close at the end,” Verstappen said. “Overall, this track is very sensitive with the tyres. The tarmac is really aggressive and when you want to go to the limit it doesn’t always work out.

“Nevertheless, most important is to be on pole. Of course you want every lap to be perfect but around a track like this, it’s not always the case. Overall, a very good day and a good starting position for tomorrow and tomorrow is what counts.”

The fact that the front row lockout is Red Bull’s first since last year’s season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix highlights how rarely Perez has been able to maximise his car’s performance in qualifying, but boosts the Mexican’s hopes of earning an extension to a contract that expires at the end of the year.

As for Verstappen, a fifth straight pole, stretching back to the final race of last season in Abu Dhabi, matches his own career best streak, set between Monaco and Britain last year.

With the winner at Suzuka having come from below the front row just three times since 1991, Red Bull will be confident of extending a constructors’ standings advantage over Ferrari that was cut to just four points in Australia.

Verstappen goes into the race four points clear of Leclerc in the drivers’ standings with Perez, a point further back, well placed to reclaim second from the Ferrari driver – at the very least.

Leclerc pays for Q1 error, Mercedes drop back again

Ferrari have been the clear main challenger to Red Bull during the opening three races with one of their cars having joined Verstappen on the front row on each occasion, but the battle behind Verstappen appears far more open in Suzuka.

It was Norris who emerged from the pack to comfortably seal a second successive P3 start by almost two tenths from Sainz.

The high-speed circuit suited McLaren at the last edition of the event little more than six months ago when Norris and team-mate Piastri sealed a double podium behind Verstappen, but it remains to be seen whether they have the pace to secure another trophy this weekend.

“It was exciting,” Norris said. “You don’t get many chances. We had a good car today. I could fight. I did some good laps, especially in Q3. I’m very happy with today.”

Despite their Saturday struggles, compounded by Leclerc having to burn an extra set of new tyres after a poor first run in Q1, Ferrari have shown positive signs on their long runs.

Sainz, therefore, will be hopeful of applying pressure to Norris, as the Spaniard seeks to maintain a brilliant start to the season in which he is outperforming Leclerc having been let go by Ferrari to make room for Hamilton next season.

The seven-time world champion’s Mercedes team continued to underwhelm as the Silver Arrows dropped backwards having taken third and fourth behind the Red Bulls in final practice.

Hamilton had a clear edge over team-mate Russell as he finished more than two tenths faster and was positive about the result having finished less than a tenth back from Sainz in fourth.

“I think we’ve got the car into a much nicer working window and so it’s been really enjoyable driving, it’s just the guys are just a little bit faster,” Hamilton said.

“We were a second or just over a second off last year to the Red Bull and seven tenths is better. Maybe if we had done something a little bit different maybe we could have been another tenth faster, maybe, but other than that, that was everything.”

With overtaking challenging at Suzuka, both the start and strategy are likely to be crucial with the battle behind Red Bull set to be closely fought.

Sky Sports F1’s live Japanese GP schedule

Sunday April 7
5am: Grand Prix Sunday Japanese GP build-up*
6am: The JAPANESE GRAND PRIX*
8am: Chequered Flag: Japanese GP reaction*
9am: Ted’s Notebook*
9.30am: Japanese Grand Prix highlights*
10.30am: Japanese Grand Prix replay

*also live on Sky Sports Main Event

Formula 1’s biggest ever season continues with the Japanese Grand Prix on Sunday, live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event with lights out at 6am. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership – No contract, cancel anytime

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Source : Sky Sports