Piastri Lead Day One of Practice in Japan, Hadjar Leads Red Bull Camp

Oscar Piastri was the fastest man on track on day one of the Japanese Grand Prix. However, the bigger story is the dilemma that Red Bull faces with finding a second driver on the parent team. Both Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda finished FP2 well off of the pace of the Racing Bulls driven by Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar. While most teams won’t put down qualifying pace laps until FP3 there is a subtle suggestion that Red Bull made the right choice to swap the drivers as Tsunoda was only 0.1 seconds off of Verstappen’s pace in FP1. Tsunoda finish FP2 in P18 over 2 seconds behind Verstappen but he also didn’t have a major on pace lap in FP2 which is not a good indicator of his current position in the field in terms of performance.

Tsunoda said, “It’s a bit different to the simulator, what I felt, to be honest. Maybe a little bit more than I expected in terms of car feeling. I knew that it is always a bit different in the real car and it was just a little bit more exaggerated in the real car and felt a bit more tricky.”

Liam Lawson Comments on Day 1 of the Japanese Grand Prix

“It was a good day, it’s nice to be back, everyone’s been very very positive,” Said Lawson. “I’ve spent a lot of time with this team, they’re a great bunch of people and it’s nice to feel welcomed back again. Also nice to be driving in Suzuka again, it’s a very cool track, with the resurfacing in sector one it’s even faster now; it just feels like it’s tearing your head off, which is quite exciting. All in all, a good day, but obviously tomorrow is the more important one. The car felt good, it does feel different, the window that the guys have at the moment is very very good, the car is pretty fast so far this season so hopefully we can replicate that tomorrow as well.

Isack Hadjar Comments on Practice

“It was more than an encouraging Friday. I loved driving here today, and this car and track combo is definitely the best out there. It’s an impressive circuit to drive in a Formula One car, and it was something I was really looking forward since the start of the season, especially Sector 1 is really fast and satisfying. We had a good FP1 and FP2 and overall, it was an enjoyable day; it was the same in Australia and China, so we know what to work on. I felt good in the car and I think we’re on the right trajectory to get a nice result tomorrow, so we’ll give our best to qualify well.”

FP2 Results from Japan