F1 Japanese Grand Prix: Verstappen's masterclass, Hadjar's promise and a tough start for Tsunoda

The National

07-04-2025

Japan's Suzuka might be one of the world's most famous tracks but it disappointed in the entertainment stakes on Sunday, with the top six on the grid finishing as they had started. The difficulty in overtaking led to a dull race – but not one without consequence – as we learnt more about the drivers, teams and cars, with the 2025 season beginning to take shape. Here are the main talking points from the weekend. Sport has the capacity to take your breath away and Max Verstappen's drive in qualifying to secure pole position was truly something special. He has his critics, but Verstappen clinched pole and converted that to first place in the race on Sunday much to the delight of Red Bull. 'I think there is no other driver at the moment that can drive a car and put it so high, or higher than the car deserves,' said veteran Fernando Alonso of Verstappen. 'I think it was a magical moment for everyone here.' When one of the greatest drivers on the grid speaks so highly of a colleague, then people should listen. This RB-21 is by no means perfect. Red Bull have struggled to find the right second driver because the car is reportedly hard to drive. It is said to be designed with Verstappen's preferences in mind, and the manner in which he can bend the machinery to his will deserves praise. Having enjoyed one of the best weekends of his career, including one of, if not the best, qualifying drives of his life, Verstappen now sits just one point behind Lando Norris in the drivers' championship. He not only managed his tyres to perfection but skilfully batted his challengers away, beating Norris by 1.4 seconds. The first to win at Suzuka for a fourth time in a row, Verstappen continues to be a driver admired and feared in equal measure. Given the challenges of overtaking at Suzuka, it made qualifying all the more important. With Verstappen managing a perfect qualifier, the McLarens started behind his Red Bull on the grid. Despite only narrowly losing out on Sunday, Norris, who finished in second, never managed to get within DRS range to apply pressure to the Red Bull. Considering the speed of their car, McLaren's strategy was questioned. Andrea Stella, the team principal, gave his reasons as to why they didn't attempt an undercut or leave Norris out for longer to have fresher tyres for the latter part of the race. They decided upon their strategy and accepted the outcome due to the difficulty in overtaking. However, you cannot help but wonder if they missed a trick and the opportunity to claim three wins in a row. 'The race was won yesterday [in qualifying] in hindsight, and I guess we always kind of know the better position you start, the more chance you have of winning,' said Norris. Isack Hadjar served notice of his ability as he finished eighth to secure four points for his team and his first points of the season. When Lewis Hamilton's father, Anthony, referred to Hadjar in glowing terms despite him spinning out of his first race in Australia, you could have been forgiven for thinking Hamilton Senior was exaggerating the French-Algerian's skill. 'I think he's a phenomenal driver, I really do. There's more to come from Isack than we probably have seen this weekend,' said Hamilton after the opening round of the season. Hadjar is slowly proving that he is on to something. Despite struggling with his seat belt in qualifying, leaving him frustrated, he still managed to claim P7 ahead of Lewis Hamilton in his Ferrari. On Sunday he extracted as much as possible from his car to finish in P8, this time just behind Hamilton. His performances have been steadily improving and his display in Suzuka has already sparked debate as to whether he deserves the second seat at Red Bull. Would anyone really put it past Christian Horner to pull off another swap? Considering the difficulties that Red Bull's second drivers have faced, asking Yuki Tsunoda to get close to his teammate Verstappen was always going to be a tall order. The Japanese driver, who replaced Liam Lawson after just two races, was hoping to finish in the points in his home race but only managed P12, improving on his P14 start by two positions. It's a little distasteful how many pundits and critics are already speculating when Tsunoda will be sacked, such is the ruthless nature of this team, and the pressure applied on the drivers. However, despite Tsunoda making a mistake in qualifying – leading to his Q2 elimination on his final hot lap – he displayed enough pace to keep everyone believing in his potential. 'It was pretty frustrating, but at the same time, I feel like I've learnt a lot of things in the 53 laps,' said Tsunoda. 'I learnt more than anything, so I'm positive about that. I'm excited for the next one but, at the same time, [this was] a home Grand Prix. It's once in a year, so it was a bit tough.' The Bahrain race next week should tell us more about how Tsunoda will settle into one of the toughest seats on the grid.