Japanese GP: Max Verstappen wins at Suzuka to crown Red Bull F1 2023 constructors’ champions

Max Verstappen took a dominant win in an otherwise action-packed Japanese GP as Red Bull were crowned constructors’ champions for the sixth time.

After narrowly holding onto the lead for Lando Norris in the first corner, polesitter Verstappen cruised to victory by 19 seconds.

Verstappen’s 26 points mean Red Bull can no longer be overtaken by Mercedes and Ferrari and is the first team to wrap up the Constructors’ Championship with six races remaining.

Norris finished second, ahead of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, who secured his first podium finish in Formula 1.

Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari for the third race in a row, ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who twice battled wheel-to-wheel with Mercedes teammate George Russell and made a brave overtake on old rival Fernando Alonso on 130R.

Carlos Sainz was sixth in the other Ferrari, ahead of Russell, who had to settle for seventh after trying to make a one-stop strategy work but slipping back in the closing stages.

Alonso finished eighth for Aston Martin, while Alpine achieved a double points finish with Pierre Gasly ninth and Esteban Ocon tenth.

While Verstappen single-handedly gave Red Bull the world title, it was a miserable afternoon for teammate Sergio Perez who had to pit twice for new front wings after contact with Hamilton and Kevin Magnussen and then retired from the race twice.

Perez’s failure to score points means Verstappen now has a 177-point lead at the top of the Drivers’ Championship and could next be crowned world champion in the Qatar GP sprint race.

Result Japanese GP
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) Pierre Gasly, Alpine
10) Esteban Ocon, Alpine

How Verstappen ensured that Red Bull won the long-awaited title

At lights out, Verstappen immediately moved across to cover Piastri, but that created an opening to give Norris a glimpse of the lead from third, but Verstappen had just enough grip to hold the lead through Turns 1 and 2 .

After an early Safety Car restart, Verstappen was never threatened as he moved to the front and won comfortably by almost 20 seconds.

While Piastri had at one point regained second place by being able to pit under a Virtual Safety Car, McLaren told him to let Norris pass to avert any threat from the one-stopping Russell.

It has long seemed like a formality that Red Bull would become back-to-back world champions throughout the season with the RB19 in a class of its own.

Verstappen’s victory at Suzuka was the team’s 15th this year, with last week’s race in Singapore the only blemish on the otherwise unbeaten record in 2023.

In the 2023 season, Red Bull has surpassed the 1988 McLaren record for most consecutive wins, setting new benchmarks of 14 consecutive wins within a season and 15 consecutive wins in total.

With six races to go, Red Bull will now try to surpass Mercedes’ record for most wins in a single season, which stands at 19 since 2016.

Verstappen, meanwhile, will get his first chance to complete his third consecutive world championship at the Qatar GP, with the next sprint weekend from October 6 to 8.

Perez’s trials could see Verstappen crowned champion on the Saturday of that weekend. His contact with Hamilton had been the cause of the Safety Car on the opening lap and after further damage in a desperate overtaking attempt on Magnussen, the Mexican stopped for the first time on lap 15.

He briefly re-emerged on lap 39, allowing Red Bull to serve his five-second penalty for the Magnussen collision, before exiting the race again on lap 42.

Hamilton offers tension as Russell left unhappy

Perez and Hamilton had touched while going four wide with the two Ferraris into the first corner, while Alex Albon’s Williams was briefly sent airborne by an Alfa Romeo at the start.

On the first full lap of the race, Russell passed teammate Hamilton at the final chicane to take seventh place, but back came the seven-time world champion and despite losing parts of his car after the earlier damage, Hamilton regained the position at Turn. One when the two Mercedes almost collided.

On lap 16 the Mercedes pair dueled again after Hamilton went wide at Degner Two, allowing Russell to get closer to him again.

They found themselves side by side through the Spoon corner and almost touched the wheels again when they both ran wide, but Hamilton held firm, prompting Russell to ask “are we fighting each other or the others?”.

With Russell opting for ‘Plan B’ of a one-stop, Hamilton soon pitted and then overtook Alonso at 130R before flying past Ocon’s Alpine at Turn One as he moved back to the front.

Russell’s strategy saw him hold onto fourth place with eight laps to go, but Leclerc made a brave move on the outside of Turn 2 before Mercedes asked the Briton to move aside for teammate Hamilton.

Russell wanted to wait until the final lap, but let Hamilton through at the first corner with four laps to go before complaining that his teammate was not helping him defend against Sainz. “If you want to play the team game… he pushed me off the court before,” Russell said on the radio.

Sainz overtook Russell one lap later, but did not have time to finish fifth on Hamilton.

What’s next?

After a two-week break, Formula 1 returns to the Losail Circuit for the second ever Qatar Grand Prix from October 6 to 8.

The sprint weekend offers Max Verstappen his first chance to complete the Drivers’ Championship and become a three-time world champion.

The Dutchman needs a lead of at least 146 points to be crowned champion in Qatar.

Will Max Verstappen complete his third world championship at the first attempt at the Qatar GP? Watch every session of the sprint weekend live on Sky Sports F1 from October 6 to 8. Stream F1 on Sky Sports with NOW. Cancel at any time