2023-09-23 07:30:00
9:55 a.m
Red-Bull-Analyse
At Red Bull itself, the analysis is of course in full swing, but the appreciation that Max Verstappen’s RB19 is doing so well this weekend in Suzuka can also be really felt:
“From the first moment we set out on the track, the car was a lot of fun to drive and it was very predictable. That’s the most important thing. Lap after lap it got even better, including in qualifying.” said Verstappen in the Top 3 press conference.
Also Dr. Helmut Marko showed up Sky Germany very satisfied with the performance of the car, but also highlighted Verstappen’s individual performance: “He wanted to show who is the best and fastest. And in this lap he succeeded in everything. It was breathtaking at the speeds at which he achieved these speeds made curves.”
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9:46 a.m
What makes Red Bull strong?
ORF-Expert Alexander Wurz tried to explain a bit why Max Verstappen was able to perform so well in Suzuka and what it takes at McLaren to finally catch up with Red Bull:
“The strength of the Red Bull is that they are so extremely fast on the straights. This means that they achieve the downforce with little air resistance and McLaren has a lot of air resistance in proportion and accordingly they lose on the straighter parts of the track in the middle sector and at the Last sector. And McLaren would have to work on it and, once they have gained the downforce, to improve for next year.”
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9:32 a.m
Attempted explanations part 2
Nico Hülkenberg was also at the microphone Sky Germany after his exit in Q1. His teammate Kevin Magnussen at least made it to Q2, but only finished 15th.
“I think, on the one hand, we generally lack speed here. We’re a bit with our backs against the wall. We knew before qualifying that it would be tough to get through Q1. To be honest, the first attempt, ok, it was canceled due to track limits in turn 2, but the second lap actually felt pretty good, but just not fast enough.”
Let’s see where Hülkenberg can go tomorrow in the Haas.
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9:28 a.m
Attempted explanations part 1
Logan Sargeant has to explain himself in the interviews after his new crash in Q1:
“I was just too aggressive on the gas, got on the grass, and then it was too late. It’s difficult. On the one hand, you want to push as hard as possible, but on the other hand, you don’t want to make any mistakes. It’s a fine line. I have that not found today.”
Some would say it’s not just that he didn’t find it today.
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8:57 a.m
Who will take the pole?
Oha, exclamation point from Charles Leclerc and Ferrari!
The Monegasque secures the best time in Q2. He can’t buy anything from it, but it at least gives hope that with Ferrari and McLaren we have two really strong opponents for Red Bull and Max Verstappen in the fight for pole position.
Eliminated in Q2: Liam Lawson, Pierre Gasly, Alexander Albon, Esteban Ocon and Kevin Magnussen.
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8:36 a.m
Hülkenberg is out
That was an exciting finish to the first qualifying section. Lots of traffic, it was a bit reminiscent of Tokyo in rush hour, but not everyone caught their appointment.
Liam Lawson put an exclamation mark against Yuki Tsunoda, finishing fourth and Tsunoda eighth. For Nico Hülkenberg, qualifying ends in Q1; he was outclassed by his teammate Kevin Magnussen, but it is not yet entirely clear why.
Also out: Valtteri Bottas, Lance Stroll, Guanyu Zhou and Logan Sargeant.
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8:13 a.m
Oops, he did it again
Logan Sargeant has done it again. The American crashes again and causes a red flag because he drifts too far out in the last corner and then crashes.
The Williams mechanic desperately puts his face in his hands and ORF expert Alexander Wurz analyzes the situation as follows:
“He had oversteer for quite a long time and could have caught it himself with his foot on the accelerator. He drank too much coffee!”
There are still nine minutes to go in Q1, Max Verstappen is currently leading ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the McLaren, Sergio Perez is in fourth place.
8:07 a.m
A lot of work for Lawson
Red Bull motorsport consultant Dr. In the preliminary report on the qualification on Sky Deutschland, Helmut Marko spoke about the decision not to give Liam Lawson a regular cockpit at AlphaTauri and pointed out that this is also a decision for the future:
“He will be a reserve driver for four cars, which means there is a good chance that he will be used at some point. He has to do simulator work for both AlphaTauri and Red Bull and then there will be a development program, so he is more than busy . And of course we have to think about the future: Both Daniel Ricciardo and Checo Perez are over 30 and that depends on the two of them, what their ideas are, how long they want to drive and we have to be prepared for that. And that’s with Lawson I think that’s the best case.”
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07:31 am
It takes perfection
Qualifying for the Japanese Grand Prix starts at 8 a.m. CEST and we are slowly getting ready for the fast-paced ride that is needed for a possible pole position.
What else is needed? Perfection, a bit of luck and a few slips, such as in the third free practice session at Ferrari, which is in a duel with McLaren.
Can either of them annoy Red Bull and Max Verstappen?
07:17 am
Hope for 2024
Carlos Sainz and Ferrari, this combination is really developing this season. He is currently leading ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc, the form in the last few races absolutely speaks for the Spaniard and his contract definitely runs for next season.
With a view to 2024, Sainz ventured forward this weekend with some of his wishes for the team: “But I hope that next year’s car will have completely different characteristics than the current one.”
You can find out what he means by this in this article by my colleague Stefan Ehlen.
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6:58 a.m
The perfect attunement
If you’re sitting there with your morning coffee and don’t know what to do with yourself, then I recommend our latest video on the Formula1.de YouTube channel.
In this our data expert has Kevin Hermann analyzed the long runs from yesterday’s training day and made his expert forecast for tomorrow’s race. Who will according to the data from our technology partner PACETEQ can keep up with Max Verstappen?
The teams haven’t brought quite as many updates, but it’s still worth taking a look at what’s new on the cars. Our editor-in-chief has this Christian Nimmervoll taken over and we zoom in very closely, because the devil is in the details for some teams this weekend.
How good is Red Bull after the Singapore bankruptcy?
The free practice session in Suzuka ended with a confident best time from Max Verstappen. More Formula 1 videos
6:48 a.m
Best season so far
George Russell has recovered from his unfortunate mishap in Singapore. With the support of the team, but also his own experiences in his career, he has put this moment behind him and is only looking forward, but still looking back, because at a media round in Suzuka he commented on his season so far:
“In terms of performance, it’s my best season so far,” said Russell.
He also confidently sets the course for the rest of the season and the future:
“My goal this year is to secure P2 for the team in the constructors’ championship. But it was pretty clear from the start of the season that we wouldn’t be fighting for the title this year. […] But as soon as we have a chance for the title again, then I’ll be fully back in the fight for the title.”
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6:39 a.m
Kiss me, Max!
Lenovo has come up with something as a name sponsor for the Japanese Grand Prix, because the best three drivers don’t get any sponsor trophies, no, they get “kiss me trophies”.
What is that supposed to be, you ask? To do this, you must immediately read the report from my colleague Stefan Ehlen, who explained the procedure to you.
But one thing is clear: “We want to enhance the award ceremony,” explains Philip Marchington, Marketing Director at Lenovo. I’m very excited and of course I hope that “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer will be playing instead of the usual nonsense, that’s for sure.
© Lenovo
6:31 a.m
Lawson looks down the tube
This morning in Japan, in the middle of the night here, the cat was let out of the bag at AlphaTauri that Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo will also be the team’s two regular drivers in the 2024 Formula 1 season.
You could already guess yesterday that Liam Lawson would probably only be able to fill the role of reserve driver when Red Bull team boss Christian Horner praised the New Zealander’s future prospects at the FIA press conference for team representatives and said that he was “in “the Red Bull family” would remain.
Lawson is now certain that after his strong performances as a substitute for Ricciardo and in the Japanese Super Formula there is no regular cockpit in the Red Bull cosmos for the time being.
6:23 a.m
Highly popular
Lance Stroll has already been through a lot this season. First the start of the season with two broken and relatively recently operated wrists, then the dominance of his teammate Fernando Alonso and last weekend in Singapore the crash in qualifying, which was so severe that he had to skip the Grand Prix on Sunday.
Aston Martin team boss Mike Krack had only words of praise for his Canadian protégé on Sky Deutschland’s coverage of the third free practice session: “He feels good mentally. The long runs weren’t bad. The first lap was now acceptable compared to Fernando “, also considering everything that happened. So everything was good yesterday.”
Nevertheless, Stroll is also exposed to a lot of criticism, the gap to Alonso is very large and he doesn’t always seem as motivated and determined. But these are just criticisms from outside, internally we are very convinced: “We work with him every day. We know what he puts in and so on. So everything is good.”
Important support for Stroll, who, like Alonso, wants to move into Q3 today.
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