By Ben Langley
The third round of the Formula 1 season takes place this weekend in Japan. George Russell leads the championship heading into Suzuka, but just four points ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli after the Italian’s victory in China last time out. Many will be wondering if the Silver Arrows will maintain their advantage over the pack this weekend, with Ferrari looking to bring a proper challenge to Mercedes for the Grand Prix win.
As the build-up to the Japanese Grand Prix intensifies, there has been an announcement by the FIA that affects the battery recharge of the cars. The sporting body announced a reduction in recharge during qualifying from 9MJ to 8MJ. This tweak is in the interest of seeing reduced super-clipping throughout qualifying which will allow for the cars to be pushed closer to their limit. All eleven teams voted in favour of the change.
The favourites heading into this weekend will once again be Mercedes, but which driver is more unclear. Russell leads the championship in the early stages and is the clear favourite to win his maiden championship. However, Antonelli’s first win in Shanghai could be a springboard for the Italian to challenge Russell more consistently. Ferrari’s strong start to the season has seen them challenge Mercedes occasionally but not have the outright pace to fight for victory. It will be interesting to see if the Scuderia are closer to Mercedes in pace this weekend. McLaren will be hoping to actually participate in the race after their double-DNS in China and will look to fight for the podium positions. Red Bull also struggled in pace and will be hoping for a better showing this time out.
Down towards the bottom, it will be a question of saving embarrassment for Honda in their home race as engine manufacturer for Aston Martin. The team in green have had a disastrous start to the season, with neither driver being able to finish either Grand Prix. Aston Martin look set to continue to prop up the grid with Cadillac. However, the new American outfit have shown improving signs over the first two races, with Valtteri Bottas finishing 13th in China.
The midfield battle looks as thrilling as ever. Ollie Bearman has emerged as the leading contender, as he sits fifth in the standings following issues for Red Bull and McLaren. Alpine had a good showing in Shanghai with both drivers scoring points and will look to challenge Haas for best of the rest in Suzuka. Racing Bulls meanwhile find themselves level on points with the senior team after strong starts by Liam Lawson and Arvid Lindblad. There will be much cause for conversation if the junior team can leapfrog Red Bull in the constructors’ championship.
Whatever happens in this weekend’s Grand Prix, it will surely be a more exciting event than last year’s bore fest. The level of overtaking in races has significantly grew which has been a positive for the new regulations. It will be interesting to see if this level of thrilling racing continues in Suzuka, as this coupled with potential rain could make for a fantastic race.
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