SUZUKA, JAPAN – APRIL 05: Max Verstappen from the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 on the track during practice before the Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka International Circuit on April 05, 2024 in Suzuka, Japan. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)
The current Formula 1 champion is determined to bounce back from his disappointing performance in Australia, where he had a DNF due to brake failure. The Suzuka circuit is expected to be favorable to the Red Bull RB20, and Verstappen has a solid track record at this iconic F1 venue.
In the other RB20, Sergio Perez achieved the second best time, not far behind his teammate’s pace. Carlos Sainz, on the other hand, was the fastest among the Ferrari cars, finishing in third place. However, Leclerc struggled and ended up in sixth place, behind George Russell and Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes, who secured fourth and fifth place, respectively.
We are in the fourth round of the 2024 F1 season, taking place in Japan at the impressive Suzuka circuit. There is much anticipation surrounding this event. In the previous round in Melbourne, Ferrari claimed a fantastic first and second place, with Sainz winning and Leclerc finishing second, while Verstappen had to retire due to brake failure. Sainz has declared that he is fully recovered, raising questions about whether Ferrari will continue their strong performance or if Red Bull will make a comeback. It promises to be an intriguing weekend.
Several teams are introducing updates for the fourth race. Sauber is bringing a new floor, while RB has a new floor and new floor edge. Williams, which currently does not have a spare chassis, made changes to the endplate of the front wing, rear wing, and central rear wing. Alpine implemented weight-saving updates, along with a new front wing and a revised arrangement of the front brake drum duct. Aston Martin also made interesting updates, including a new floor, floor fences, floor edge, and diffuser.
The main teams, Ferrari and Red Bull, also made notable modifications. Ferrari introduced a new front wing and a revised rear suspension, specifically reshaping the rear leg deflector of the rear upper arm. Red Bull, on the other hand, made changes to the sidepod inlet and the location of the cooling inlets on the bodywork. They also introduced a new floor, floor edge, and smaller specific inlet and outlet ducts for the front brakes for the circuit.
Pirelli, the Italian tire manufacturer, brought their hardest range of tires to Suzuka, including the C1 (Hard), C2 (Medium), and C3 (Soft) compounds. Suzuka is a legendary circuit on the F1 calendar, and the most common strategy for this race is a two-stop pit stop strategy. Pirelli’s tire selection reflects the challenging nature of the track.
The practice session started under cloudy conditions, with a track temperature of 25 degrees Celsius and ambient temperatures of 17 degrees. There is a 20% chance of rain. Ayumu Iwasa, who is replacing Ricciardo at RB, made his practice debut and quickly hit the track. However, there were some complaints from Russell about a McLaren unexpectedly slowing down and Sainz expressing dissatisfaction with an Alpine hindering his progress.
Today is a significant day for Ayumu Iwasa as he takes over Daniel Ricciardo’s place at RB for this session. The Super Formula driver is making his mark in the world of F1.
Most cars are equipped with medium tires, while Ferrari, Red Bull, and one of the Haas cars have chosen to use hard tires. The Aston Martin, driven by Stroll, has aero rakes on its AMR24. However, it was noted that the rake on Stroll’s car was loose and partially damaged on the left side as he headed towards the pits.
With less than 20 minutes into the session, Norris took the lead with Alonso close behind, both setting their lap times on medium tires. At this point, Stroll and Albon were the only two drivers without registered times, while rookie Iwasa was at the bottom of the leaderboard, 2.878s off the pace.
Verstappen quickly claimed the top spot on hard tires, setting a time over three tenths faster than Norris’ time on medium tires. As the session reached the halfway mark, Hamilton became the first driver to set a time on soft tires and was the fastest. However, the session was interrupted by a red flag when Sargeant crashed his Williams at Turn 7, causing damage to the front and rear of his car.
After the restart, teams hurried to get in a few more laps, now on soft tires. Verstappen was the first car out of the pits, closely followed by Perez, Russell, Sainz, and Alonso. The latter three were involved in a battle for position on track to secure a proper lap.
Hulkenberg received a black and white flag for not following the race director’s instructions and crossing the white line at the pit exit. Verstappen, on his first lap with soft tires, reclaimed the top position on the time sheets, improving his time by over 1.3 seconds. His teammate quickly joined him in second place.
The other drivers continued their laps on soft tires before adding fuel to their cars for longer runs. With less than nine minutes remaining, there were reports of light rain in the pits. However, this did not have a significant impact on the session, and teams continued to complete laps with higher fuel loads.
The session ended with practice starts by the drivers. The report is still ongoing.
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