In the thrilling Japanese Grand Prix, Max Verstappen secured an impressive victory, dominating the race from start to finish.
He managed to hold onto his lead ahead of Lando Norris, who had a strong start and then pulled away to win by a comfortable 19-second margin.
This win not only secured Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship but also ensured that Red Bull were crowned constructors’ champions for a sixth time.
Verstappen’s 26 points from the race meant that Mercedes and Ferrari could no longer catch up with Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship.
This achievement was significant, as Red Bull became the first team to win the Constructors’ Championship with six races still remaining.
Verstappen was ecstatic about this accomplishment, saying, “To win here was great. The most important thing was to win the constructors. Very proud for everyone working at the track and at the factory. We are having an incredible year.”
In second place was Lando Norris, who finished ahead of his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.
Piastri’s podium finish was his first in Formula 1 and a great achievement for him.
Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari for the third consecutive race, ahead of Lewis Hamilton in fifth place.
Hamilton had some exciting battles with his Mercedes teammate George Russell and successfully overtook Fernando Alonso at 130R.
Carlos Sainz finished sixth in the other Ferrari, while Russell had to settle for seventh after attempting a one-stop strategy that didn’t quite work.
Alonso finished in eighth place for Aston Martin, while Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly secured double points for Alpine, with Ocon finishing ninth and Gasly in tenth place.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t a great day for Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez, who had to pit twice for new front wings after contact with Hamilton and Kevin Magnussen.
Perez then retired from the race twice, meaning that he failed to score any points.
This now means that Verstappen holds a 177-point lead at the top of the Drivers’ Championship and is in a great position to be crowned world champion at the upcoming Qatar GP on October 7th.
Japanese GP result
1) Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2) Lando Norris, McLaren
3) Oscar Piastri, McLaren
4) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
5) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
6) Carlos Sainz, Ferrari
7) George Russell, Mercedes
8) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
9) Esteban Ocon, Alpine
10) Pierre Gasy, Alpine
