Victory but no title for Verstappen!
The Dutchman of Red Bull takes the victory but does not (yet) achieve the title of world champion. Max Verstappen is ahead of Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez. The French Esteban Ocon finished in a very good 4th place. Doubts remain about Leclerc’s 2nd place shooting straight before crossing the finish line.
It’s the end of the clock, last round!
The drivers only have one lap to attack.
Half is over
If the points scale is changed again, the current positions will not allow Verstappen to be mathematically crowned world champion.
Gasly still in the pits
Third stop for the Frenchman, 18th and close last in the Grand Prix. There are 12 minutes left in the race.
Hamilton attacks Ocon. at
Great battle for 4th place! Ocon withstands Hamilton’s attacks, but for how long?
The most decisive fastest lap point for Verstappen?
According to the rules, the winner of the GP only earns 13 points and not 25 when less than 50% of the race is completed, which could be the case this Sunday at Suzuka (the first nine drivers earn points). In this hypothesis, Verstappen cannot be crowned with a victory and the best time this Sunday. On the other hand, he can be if he scores 6 points more than Perez and 8 more than Leclerc, which has a bad start. It is Leclerc who has the fastest lap in the preliminary race.
Here is the distribution of the points:
1st – 13 points; 2nd – 10 points; 3rd – 8 points; 4th – 6 points; 5th – 5 points; 6th – 4 points; 7th – 3 points; 8th – 2 points; 9th – 1 point.
Fastest lap for Leclerc
Less than half an hour before the end of this GP, Monegask Charles Leclerc wins the fastest lap of the race.
Verstappen regains his place as leader
The game of pit stops benefits Verstappen, who regains his first place for Leclerc at 0”4.
Verstappen and Leclerc in the pits!
The two leaders in turn stop and opt for intermediate tires. Alonso is now in the lead.
Multiple drivers in the pits
This is the case for Bottas, Vettel and Latifi who start on intermediate tyres.
And here we go again!
Verstappen leads the race for Leclerc! Let’s go for the fight on a track that is still very wet.
Already two reconnaissance rounds
The departure is undoubtedly imminent.
The cars back on the track
Under the guidance of the safety car, the single-seaters are back on the Suzuka circuit. “The track is very good,” said Hamilton. It will be a flying start.
The Wrath of Jules Bianchi’s Father
“No respect for the lives of the pilots, no respect for the memory of Jules,” wrote Philippe Bianchi, the father of the French pilot who died in Suzuka in 2015 after his single-seater got stuck under a lifting device that ended in evacuate the Sauber of German Adrian Sutil, who left the track on the previous lap.
The race resumes
The weather conditions have improved slightly and the race will resume at 9.15am.
The Fury of Sergio Perez
After Lando Norris, it is Sergio Perez’s turn to express his anger at the presence of a tow truck on the track. “How do we make it clear that we don’t want a crane on the track anymore? We’ve already lost Jules (Bianchi) because of this mistake. What happened today is totally unacceptable!!! I hope this is the last time I see a crane on track,” tweeted the winner of the last Singapore GP.
What if Gasly was the culprit?
Pierre Gasly will be summoned by the race directors in half an hour. But for what reason? According to Canal+, the Frenchman who was furious because he took to the track next to a truck could be punished for exceeding the 250 km/h limit under a red flag.
No points awarded if the race does not resume
According to the rules, no points will be awarded if the race is not resumed. To split the points, the drivers must have completed two laps, which was the case at Suzuka, except that the second lap was driven under the safety car. However, the two laps of the track must be completed under normal racing conditions.
Norris also not warm to resume
Lando Norris (McLaren) just posted a message on Twitter and like Albon, the Brit is obviously not so eager to continue: “Wtf. How did this happen!? We lost a life a few years ago (the death of Jules Bianchi in 2015 here in Suzuka, editor’s note. We risk our lives, especially in such conditions. We want to race, but so… Unacceptable.”
What you need to know about Gasly’s anger at a tow truck
After removing a display panel from his wing that landed on the front of his AlphaTauri, Pierre Gasly returned to the runway but ended up with a tow truck. The presence of this truck could have been very dangerous. She drove the Rouennais mad with rage, who said, “I could have killed myself!” The race marshals have opened an investigation. According to Albon, Vettel had already raised the problem of entering these tow trucks too quickly after an incident.
… All info and photos are here
Albon doesn’t want to go back in the race
Asked by Canal+, Alexander Albon does not want to resume this Grand Prix. The Williams driver thinks the conditions are not good enough. “These are the worst conditions I’ve experienced in my career. Of course we want to race, but at what cost?”
It doesn’t get any better at Suzuka
According to the weather forecast, a shower is expected in about ten minutes. We are therefore not ready to resume the race.
Delayed restart
The rain never stops to disrupt this Grand Prix. The new beginning is yet to come. A point will be made in 10 minutes.
The race will resume at 07:50.
The race marshals announce the resumption of the race at 07:50.
The reasons for Gasly’s anger
According to Canal+, Pierre Gasly was furious at being on the track with a truck after removing the panel from his AlphaTauri in the pits.
No sign of better weather
Due to the rain, there are still doubts about the resumption of the race.
Gasly’s Great Anger
In images broadcast by Canal + after the break of the race, we could see the French driver very angry in the pits without knowing the reasons for his anger, even though it seems to be related to the panel that was on just after the start car landed.
The spectacular image of Gasly with a piece of billboard
The start was also eventful for Pierre Gasly, who inherited a display on the front of his AlphaTauri before the race was interrupted.
2/53: red flag!
The race was interrupted after racing incidents and in particular the retirement of Carlos Sainz.
1/53: Sainz and Albon on the mat, safety car
The rain is already doing damage! The race is under safety car after Sainz (Ferrari) and Albon (Williams) leave the track.
1:53: Let’s go, Verstappen opposes Leclerc
Good start in the rain! Attacked by Leclerc from the start, Verstappen resisted and kept his first place! On to the show!
Let’s go for the warm up lap
After a few minutes of doubt because of the rain, the start is well stopped and not started. There are 53 laps on the schedule.
Pierre Gasly will start from the pits
A choice of the French driver (AlphaTauri) dictated by the weather conditions. He had to start in the 9th line.
To know everything about the starting grid…
The article on qualifications is here
The rain should disrupt the race
It’s raining on Suzuka. These difficult weather conditions will make the race complicated and exciting.
Max Verstappen crowned champion as…
-He wins the Grand Prix with the fastest lap of the race
-He scores 6 points more than Perez and 8 more than Leclerc
Hi there
Welcome to RMC Sport to follow the Japanese Grand Prix, the 17th round of the F1 World Championship, live. At the wheel of his Red Bull, pole man Max Verstappen can become world champion for the second time in his career this Sunday at Suzuka after he burned a first cartridge in Singapore last week. Departure at 7 o’clock