Japan – Free Practice 1: Rosberg takes the lead but Hamilton not far behind

The earliest session of the year started at 3 a.m. French time, trickling in with drivers completing their installation lap one by one, some were equipped with sensor grids placed on the sides of the cars as during test sessions.

Equipped with soft tires, it was Sergio Pérez in the Force India who opened the round of recorded fast laps, setting the first reference of the weekend at 1’34″956 for the Mexican. The drivers were far from rushing onto the track, but after 15 minutes of the session, things began to loosen up slowly, and now it’s Pascal Wehrlein who sets a reference time of 1’39″548 on medium tires.

The first big mistake this morning goes to Alonso who, upon entering Spoon, saw his rear end slide out; drifting, he went and hit the tire wall with relative force. Miraculously, he returned to the pits with “only” a damaged rear wing, the suspension being intact.

Going. Going. Gone… 🙈

Alonso has been off at Spoon Curve

He’s broken the rear wing on his McLaren #FP1 🇯🇵 #JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/2k8cLs2rJO

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

As we reached the first third of the session, all the drivers except Vettel had set a reference time. Almost exactly 30 minutes in, the German recorded the 3rd reference time of this early session. Unsurprisingly, the Mercedes were leading, with Nico Rosberg ahead of Lewis Hamilton by some 216 thousandths. Behind them, as mentioned, Vettel is at “583, and Räikkönen holds the 4th time. Beyond that, the gaps exceed a second, with Pérez in 5th and Hülkenberg in 6th, putting the Force India cars ahead of the Red Bulls, who are 7th and 8th, respectively for Ricciardo and Verstappen. Despite his early off-track excursion, Alonso is still holding the 9th time, with Grosjean closing the top 10, giving a little morale boost to the Frenchman.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION (1 HOUR to go): ROS edging out HAM for top spot, Force India going strong 👏 #FP1 🇯🇵 #JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/X8Go60RQ2H

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

After the first round of recorded lap times, the usual parade of cars in the pit lane meant that by the 40th minute of the session, no one was driving. At McLaren, the MP4-31 seemed more affected than it appeared, as mechanics were busy changing the car’s floor.

Regarding sector times, Mercedes is not the supreme leader. While Rosberg holds the best times in sectors 2 and 3, it’s Vettel who has the best time in the first part of the circuit. As for the speed through 130R, Rosberg and Grosjean share the top spot. No Honda engine appears in this ranking this time, but a Renault engine does, with Magnussen holding the 6th fastest speed.

For 10 minutes, silence had reclaimed its place in Suzuka, but now Kevin Magnussen has reignited the action by going out on hard tires.

With the second third of the session completed, it’s time for a new update. No change in the top three places, but just off the podium, it’s Hülkenberg now ahead of Räikkönen, Pérez is in 6th, Ricciardo in 7th. Bottas has slotted in behind the Red Bull in 8th place, and now Kvyat and Sainz complete the top 10. Verstappen is 11th, Alonso and Button are now 12th and 13th.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION (1 HOUR): ROS setting the pace in #FP1, HUL splitting the Ferraris #FP1 🇯🇵 #JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/R6gCjxA65P

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

But at the start of the final third of the session, the serious matters began. With soft tires fitted, attempts followed one after the other, Räikkönen temporarily achieved the 2nd fastest time before Vettel took the lead, but only briefly, as Rosberg quickly regained the top spot in the temporary standings, setting a reference time of 1’32″431, a full second faster than Vettel.

For once, Romain Grosjean experienced new brake issues in Degner 2. The Frenchman simply went straight on as he was about to dive into the corner before the straight leading to 130R. There are concerns of an early end to the session for the Haas driver.

GRO is off and into the tyres at Degner

“The brake doesn’t brake?” 📻#FP1 🇯🇵 #JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/48uF0S4obc

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

At the forefront, Hamilton managed to secure the second-fastest time right under Vettel’s nose, slotting in two-tenths behind his teammate. Further back, Alonso was able to get back on track after his exit and change of floor; the Spaniard managed to secure the 9th provisional time of the session. Meanwhile, on Daniil Kvyat’s radio, there was mention of an octopus, which could be seen as a hidden message, of course.

Kvyat back on track in #FP1

No sign of any octopus 🐙👀#JapaneseGP 🇯🇵 #F1 pic.twitter.com/7PuYl96D7o

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

At the end of a final third of the session dedicated to relay simulations, the times did not improve, except in isolated cases.

Rosberg therefore keeps the best time with Hamilton, Vettel, Räikkönen, and Ricciardo in pursuit to complete the top 5. Following them, Verstappen is 6th, the Force India cars perform in 7th and 8th places with Hülkenberg and Pérez. Alonso and Bottas close the top 10. Beyond that, we find the Toro Rosso with Kvyat and Sainz in 11th and 12th places, showing good form at the start of the weekend. Button’s other McLaren holds 13th ahead of Romain Grosjean in 14th, whose session ended prematurely after going off at Degner 2, with Felipe Nasr completing the top 15. The other French driver, Esteban Ocon, holds the 20th time and leads his teammate by almost two-tenths.

PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION (END OF #FP1): First blood to ROS at Suzuka, edging out HAM by 0.215s #JapaneseGP 🇯🇵 #F1 pic.twitter.com/fG03iLQSGz

— Formula 1 (@F1) 7 octobre 2016

Find the continuation of the hostilities a little later with Free Practice 2