On October 8, Beijing time, the 18th Japanese Grand Prix of the 2022 F1 season ended the qualifying competition at the Suzuka Circuit. This weekend, Verstappen, who has the opportunity to successfully defend the drivers’ championship, 1:29.304, 0.01 seconds ahead of Leclerc and won the pole position for the first time here. Leclerc and Sainz ranked second and third respectively, Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu Ranked 14th.
Like last weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, the Japanese Grand Prix also returns following a two-year absence. This is the 32nd time that the F1 Grand Prix will be held at Suzuka Circuit, which means that each team must welcome the race in a new way. A full range of challenges in terms of tracks, weather conditions, next-generation cars and tire settings. At Suzuka, the focus is on lateral force, not traction and braking. Both the 130R and Spoon are tough corners not found on other tracks, and the unique “figure 8” layout means the sustained energy load through the tires is nearly the highest of the year.
The first quarter of qualifying: Verstappen is the fastest Zhou Guanyu to advance to 10th
The qualifying race was held in fine weather, the temperature was 19 degrees Celsius, the track temperature was 27 degrees, the humidity was 57%, and the northwest wind was 9.7 km/h. Unlike other drivers who use soft tires, Mercedes arranged for Hamilton and Russell to take the lead with medium tires, but from the performance point of view, medium tires were not competitive, and both drivers were once in the relegation zone. Norris blundered off the track at Turn 9, while Gasly and Kakuda Yugi both suffered braking problems.
In the final stage, Mercedes had to let the two drivers change to soft tires and run once more to avoid an embarrassing situation. In the end, the five drivers who were eliminated were: Albon, Gasly, Magnussen, Stoll and Latifi. Verstappen, Sainz and Leclerc ranked in the top three; Zhou Guanyu ranked 10th, Bottas ranked 14th, and Vettel skipped the cut with a slight advantage of 0.065 seconds.
Second quarter qualifying: Zhou Guanyu P14 stops Alonso Vettel advances
At the beginning of Q2, the sun came out of the scene. In the first attempt, Verstappen was the fastest with 1:30.346, still beating the two Ferraris. Zhou Guanyu is temporarily ranked 13th, while Bottas is ranked 10th. After that, the riders made a last-ditch effort. As a result, Perez, Alonso and Verstappen ranked in the top three. The eliminated drivers are: Ricciardo, Bottas, Kakuda Yuyi, Zhou Guanyu and Mick Schumacher, Vettel successfully advanced to Q3.
Qualifying in the third quarter: Verstappen takes pole position and locks second
At the end of the first round of flying laps, Verstappen took the temporary pole position at 1:29.304, Leclerc and Sainz ranked second and third respectively, Alonso and Vettel ranked fifth and sixth respectively. On the track, because Verstappen suddenly slipped and lost control of the car at turn 15, it almost caused Norris to rear-end behind him. Norris passed the buffer zone to avoid the crash. The accident will be investigated following the race.
In the last lap, Verstappen failed to refresh the fastest lap, but still locked his fifth pole position of the season with a score of 1:29.304, and also the 18th pole position of his F1 career, with Leclerc behind 0.01 seconds to get second, Sainz ranked third, ranked fourth to tenth: Perez, Ocon, Hamilton, Alonso, Russell, Vettel and Norris. The main race of the Japanese Grand Prix will be held at 13:00 on October 9, Beijing time. (Tauranga)Return to Sohu, see more
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