In the qualifying session for the Japanese Grand Prix, Red Bull’s drivers performed well, with Max Verstappen securing pole position. Verstappen set a fast time on his first attempt, with Lando Norris from McLaren close behind in second place.
However, on the second run in qualifying, Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez managed to surpass Norris and take second place, while Verstappen himself improved his time to secure pole position with a very quick first sector.
Behind the Red Bull duo, Carlos Sainz from Ferrari claimed third place, followed by Fernando Alonso from Aston Martin and Oscar Piastri from McLaren.
Lewis Hamilton from Mercedes, who showed promising pace earlier, ended up in seventh place, while Charles Leclerc from Ferrari took eighth.
In the second part of qualifying, Yuki Tsunoda from Red Bull outperformed his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, much to the delight of the home crowd. Meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg from Haas lost his chance to improve his time after going too wide on a curve, and Valtteri Bottas from Mercedes finished in 13th place.
In the first part of qualifying, Alex Albon from Williams made it to the next round, while Lance Stroll from Aston Martin was knocked out. Pierre Gasly from Alpine narrowly missed out on advancing to Q2, along with Kevin Magnussen from Haas, Logan Sargeant from Williams, and Zhou Guanyu from Sauber.
After qualifying, Albon, Russell, and Piastri faced investigations: Albon for possibly slowing down too much during Q1, and Russell and Piastri for an incident during pit lane exit when Russell’s car was released into Piastri’s path.