Japan – Race: Decisive victory for Bottas who secures the title for his team

The good weather now welcomes this 17th event of the season, all under an ambient temperature of 22°C, while the track rises to 40°C. A slight wind is present but should not be problematic for the participants.

False start for Ferrari

Completely missed start from the Ferraris. Valtteri Bottas immediately takes advantage to take the lead in the race. Verstappen, alongside Leclerc, collides with the Monegasque driver, who breaks his wing while the Red Bull driver goes off track without any apparent major damage. No pit stop for Leclerc, who continues on track with a wing dragging on the ground. He suddenly loses the outer debris, which “explodes” in front of Hamilton, causing him to lose his mirror. No investigation for the collision between Leclerc and Verstappen, which strongly surprises the Dutchman, as he was not responsible for the contact unlike Leclerc.

In the 4th lap, Charles Leclerc finally comes into the pits to change his wing and goes back out in last place. Up front, Valtteri Bottas pulls ahead, leading by more than two seconds ahead of Vettel, Hamilton, and Sainz. Gasly had a good start and is in 6th place just behind Albon. The race incidents benefited the Renault drivers, equipped with medium tires, both of whom find themselves in the points, with Hülkenberg in 8th and Ricciardo in 10th.

In the 8th lap, the stewards decide to revisit the starting incident between Leclerc and Verstappen, as well as Vettel’s false start, from which he did not benefit.

On the 10th lap, Max Verstappen complains to his team about the very difficult handling of his car from the 17th position, likely linked to the first lap incident.

The stewards decide not to penalize Sebastian Vettel for his false start, which did not result in any time gain.

Verstappen retires, Bottas takes off

Following his previous radio messages, Max Verstappen returns to his pit to retire on the 15th lap, as his car is causing him too many problems. Ahead, Valtteri Bottas is racing solo, now holding more than a 6-second lead over Vettel, who is under pressure from Hamilton. The Italian team reacts by calling the German driver to pit for red tires. Consequently, he will need to stop again, as alternating tire types is mandatory. Mercedes covers themselves by imitating their opponent and calls Bottas to pit. The Finn also comes out on red tires and will have to stop again, while his teammate remains on track with an offset strategy. Indeed, at this stage, only one stop has been chosen for the Englishman, unlike his teammate.

At the 20th lap, the stewards indicate that the incident at the start between Verstappen and Leclerc will be reviewed at the end of the race.

Lewis Hamilton finally stops on lap 22 and realizes that his gamble on a single stop will likely be complicated. He comes out 10 seconds behind Sebastian Vettel, now relegated to more than 11 seconds behind Bottas.

Superb overtaking by Pierre Gasly on Lando Norris to move up to 9th place. A solid start to the race for the Frenchman, who confirms being more comfortable at the wheel of the Toro Rosso.

Leclerc and Norris return to the pits again, both for the second time. The Monegasque comes out on red tires and will probably have to stop a third time, as the abrasive Suzuka asphalt does not spare the tires.

In the battle for 10th position, Kvyat is struggling and is overtaken by Hülkenberg and Perez at the end of the straight, with both protagonists equipped with fresh tires while the Russian is suffering with his old ones.

On the 30th lap, Charles Leclerc is closing in on Perez’s Racing Point, in 9th position. He overtakes the Mexican before Spoon and is now chasing Hülkenberg’s Renault for the 8th position. It’s worth noting that Hülkenberg’s teammate, after moving back up to 5th, finally stops and comes out in 11th. This is Sebastian Vettel’s second stop, and he will have to manage his medium tires carefully; otherwise, a third stop will be necessary. The two Mercedes are currently leading the race.

On the 35th lap, Leclerc battles with his friend Pierre Gasly, who bravely holds off the Ferrari before the Monegasque dives into Spoon’s apex, fortunate that Gasly checks his mirrors, thereby avoiding a collision. Two laps later, race leader Valtteri Bottas is called into the pits and equips the red tires. The Finn rejoins the track amidst traffic, a lap ahead.

Mercedes chases the double and the constructor’s title

At the end of the 40th lap, the Mercedes are still holding the top two positions and seem poised to achieve another one-two finish, which would secure the constructors’ title for Mercedes. Leading with one less stop, Hamilton remains in the lead for now. In the battle for points, Daniel Ricciardo makes an overtake on Perez at the edge of the track width at the end of the straight and claims 10th place just behind his teammate.

On the 43rd lap, Hamilton stops for a second time to equip soft tires and will attempt to catch up to Vettel, who is on worn medium tires, to secure the sought-after double for the Silver Arrows.

Ricciardo passes his teammate using the slipstream and thus moves up to 9th place. After also overtaking Stroll, the Australian has Gasly and 7th place in his sights. A solid race for Renault after the debacle in qualifying.

On the 48th lap, Lewis Hamilton takes advantage of the DRS and the straight line to get back into Vettel’s slipstream. Vettel is currently holding onto his 2nd position but seems to be struggling with his worn tires. Meanwhile, Gasly was overtaken by Ricciardo, who moves into a valuable 7th place, just behind Leclerc, 30 seconds ahead. Hindered by backmarkers Hülkenberg and Gasly, the latter nonetheless allows Vettel to avoid being overtaken by Hamilton, benefiting from the slipstream. The German still barely holds onto his 2nd position after slightly blocking the Englishman at the end of the straight. The Briton asks his team for more power to aim for the double podium. The trajectories are opposite between Vettel and Hamilton, with defense and attack. In the final laps, Perez goes off the track at the 2nd corner while trying to overtake Gasly following a slight contact. This results in him conceding points to his teammate, who moves into 10th position.

Bottas wins ahead of Vettel, who managed to hold off Hamilton.

Race standings: