Verstappen Clinches Title At Japanese Grand Prix

Max Verstappen won a shortened action-packed FIA Formula 1 Grand Prix, with only twenty-eight racing laps being completed. It wasn’t a classic race, marred by rain and tricky conditions, but it saw Verstappen secure the 2022 Drivers’ World Championship.

It was the second wet Formula 1 race in a row and in usual Formula 1 fashion, the first lap saw the first safety car of the day. Carlos Sainz Jr. found himself in the wall, and he wasn’t the only one who spun around, with Sebastian Vettel and Zhou Guanyu also having moments; they managed to keep it out of the barriers. The red flag was brought out due to the rain intensifying, leading to outrage from drivers and fans questioning why the race even started, on top of that all the action saw the race only reach twenty-eight laps but the drivers were still awarded full points.

The Podium

Verstappen led the race throughout and handled it in a professional manner. The Dutchman was caught out of the start by Leclerc but he managed to keep his place going into turn one. Sergio Perez finished second after Leclerc was handed a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage, giving Red Bull another 1-2 finish in the 2022 season. Leclerc rounded out the podium, and despite keeping Perez behind the penalty means that his Championship hopes are now mathematically over.

It was a thirty-second win for Verstappen, equalling Fernando Alonso’s amount of wins and also equaling Alonso’s two titles. Leclerc picked up another podium, helping Scuderia Ferrari in their battle for second place in the Championship with Mercedes.

Credit: Scuderia Ferrari Press Office

What Happened Behind?

Esteban Ocon picked up big points for BWT Alpine F1 Team with a fourth-placed finish coupled with a seventh-place finish for Alonso, which helped Alpine move back above McLaren F1 Team in the Constructors Championship by thirteen points. Alonso found himself in the lead after everyone pitted in front of him, and picked up a free stop under Safety Car conditions.

It was an indifferent day for Mercedes as they could only finish fifth and eighth on track. Lewis Hamilton struggled to pass Ocon, with the Alpine’s straight-line speed paying dividends through the race. George Russell had an action-packed race and found himself well down the pack after a slow stop onto the intermediate tyre. Despite only finishing eighth, it was a sublime driver by Russell who had to make a number of moves. He could have finished seventh too, but a late stop by Alonso onto fresh tyres, saw him get overtaken with just over five minutes to go.

Nicholas Latifi picked up his first points of the season, finishing ninth and fending off pressure from Lando Norris on the final lap. Williams’ Racing announced in the past few weeks that the Canadian driver would leave the team at the end of the season due to poor performance, and the team wanting to look in a different direction. Latifi has had a poor season, but after scoring points today he will be able to look back on his Formula 1 career with pride. The other Williams driver Alex Albon was forced to retire on the first lap amid all the drama due to an engine issue.

One of the biggest feel-good results of the day was Vettel finishing his final Japanese Grand Prix in sixth place for Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team. Despite spinning on the first lap, Vettel managed to get his way back up the order due to a clever strategy and some overtaking moves. It wasn’t a good day for Lance Stroll, who could only finish twelfth for the British outfit. The Canadian driver showed good race pace moving up seven places, but despite putting pressure on Daniel Ricciardo in the final, it was too little too late.

Credit: Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula One Team

It was a disappointing day for McLaren, who finished exactly where they started the Grand Prix. Norris finished in tenth place and lacked pace throughout before a last-lap push to try and put pressure on Latifi. Ricciardo struggled to find pace for too for McLaren, with the car looking considerably worse in wet conditions, similarly to the Singapore Grand Prix. The result saw Alpine go back above McLaren in the Championship, making the next few races of the season crucial for the result of that battle.

Scuderia AlphaTauri failed to collect points and lost ground in their battle for seventh place with Aston Martin and Haas F1 Team. Home favourite Yuki Tsunoda failed to score points due to a real lack of pace in the car. Pierre Gasly made the headlines, Gasly was the last driver to return to the pit lane under the red flag, and was seen getting animated with one of the team members in the pit after getting out of his car. On board, footage saw that Gasly passed a stationary tractor on track and the Frenchman was furious with it, getting extremely animated. The driver made his feelings clear on the team radio saying, “What is this tractor on track? I passed next to it. This is unacceptable. Remember what happened. I can’t believe this! We don’t want to see ever, a crane on the track.”

Alfa Romeo ORLEN F1 Team kept up their bad run of form and finished without points yet again, while Haas also failed to collect points despite Mick Schumacher running in a good position in parts of the race but finished in eighteenth after a gamble to stay out longer than the rest of the grid.

Despite Verstappen claiming the Championship, there is still battles up and down the Formula 1 grid and the upcoming American Grand Prix should be a cracker with Hamilton still looking to pick up his first win of the season along with multiple battles up and down the paddock.