Max Verstappen set the fastest time on the first day of free practice for the Japanese Formula 1 Grand Prix. Contrary to usual, the fastest laps came in FP1, as the second session was heavily affected by rain.
In the morning at Suzuka, Red Bull showed strength, with Verstappen finishing at the top. On his best lap, the Dutchman clocked a time of 1m30.056s, beating teammate Sergio Pérez by 0.181s. In third was the winner of the Australian GP, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari), 0.213s behind, followed by the Mercedes of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton.
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) was sixth and Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin/Mercedes) finished seventh ahead of the best McLaren, Oscar Piastri (McLaren/Mercedes). The session was interrupted with a red flag due to a crash by Logan Sargeant (Williams/Mercedes) at turn seven. It’s worth noting the 16th position of Ayumu Iwasa (Visa Cash App RB F1 Team), who replaced Daniel Ricciardo in this session to make his debut in F1 free practice sessions.
FP2 started with rain, resulting in limited action. With intermediate tires, Piastri set the fastest time at 1m34.725s, finishing 0.501s ahead of Hamilton, who was the first to hit the track. At the time he did, 15 minutes had passed. Leclerc was third, 4.035s off the pace, with a time that was not very representative.
Yuki Tsunoda (Visa Cash App RB F1 Team) was fourth, ahead of Ricciardo who managed to get his first kilometers of the weekend in Suzuka despite the rain. No other drivers had times recorded, as only 13 went out on track. Verstappen, Pérez, Alonso, and Russell were among those who never left the garages.
