In a masterful display of driving that his race engineer called “perfection,” Max Verstappen claimed his fourth consecutive victory at the Suzuka Circuit in what marked the final F1 Japanese GP with Honda power for Red Bull Racing.
Battling McLaren’s papaya army
After securing an “unlikely pole” during Saturday’s qualifying session and despite concerns about upshifts early in the F1 Japanese GP race, Verstappen fended off both McLaren drivers throughout the entire 53-lap event. The Dutchman got a strong start despite damp track conditions from an early morning rain shower, immediately pulling ahead of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
“Yeah, it was a fun race,” Verstappen reflected afterward. “I mean, the whole race I saw two orange cars in my mirror, and yeah, especially those last 20 laps, we were pushing quite hard out there. You could just feel the tyres were degrading more and more. But you had to keep on fighting it, basically being on the limit. But yeah, it was better than expected, to be honest.
“My race pace—I do think that probably the cooler track helped us out a bit. Less tyre overheating, and yeah, just very proud with this result. I think most of it of course was done yesterday being able to start from pole, because around here I think it’s just very hard to follow.”
Max Verstappen is “very proud” of his team after the F1 Japanese GP
“You know, the cars are improving every single year, more downforce, and probably you’ll see it’s just a bit harder to follow. You only have one DRS zone as well here, so it’s very tough. Plus the degradation seemed quite low, so you do a one-stop. So I think that definitely helps. But still, we take it, we really maximised the weekend, and I’m very proud of everyone.”
When asked at what point in the race he thought he had secured the win, Verstappen responded, “It’s impossible to tell because you don’t really know how long the tyres are going to hold up.
“But I would say with like five laps to go, I felt like, ‘This is OK, the tyres are holding on to a normal extent, they’re not fully falling out of the window.’ So I was like, ‘well, from here on it’s just make no mistakes and it should be OK’.”
Tense moments at the pit exit
The most tense moment came during the pit stop sequence when Verstappen and Norris emerged side-by-side from pit lane. Norris momentarily went through the grass, a moment that Verstappen later joked about. “Yeah, I think the grass was a bit—it was not really well cut on the right-hand side. So I think Lando saw that as well, and he made sure that it was nicely cut.”
When pressed for additional comments on the incident, Verstappen displayed his characteristic directness, saying, “What do you want me to say?
“Next question then!”
Better than expected, but work ahead for Red Bull
Despite Red Bull’s struggles earlier in the season, Verstappen remained realistic about the team’s current performance level. When asked if this victory meant Red Bull could now challenge at every circuit, he was measured in his response.
“I don’t think so, but honestly, like I said, today we take it. It was very hard to pass around here,” he said.
“Bahrain—completely different track, very tough on tyres, tyres overheating as well. We still have work to do. But it does show that if we really nail everything, we can be up there. But from our side, we want to be better than just sometimes being up there.
“So we just keep working hard and just see where we can be at in Bahrain already. Hopefully, we keep on improving the car, you know, with the through corner balance, and then hopefully it unlocks also just in general a bit more pace.”
The champion admitted that the team has identified limitations with the car but is working against them as effectively as possible.
“I think we know our limitations. So we just have to try and run against that limitation as much as we can. But yeah, it’s still not fixed. So this is hopefully going to be fixed soon, but I cannot give you a timeline on that. It’s just about trying to find that limit, which is really sensitive for us at the moment.”
A special performance amid challenges
When asked about the various superlatives used to describe his performance—from “magical” (Fernando Alonso) to “inspirational” (Christian Horner)—Verstappen acknowledged the special nature of the weekend.
“Yeah, it does [feel special]. I mean, it also means, I guess, that I really care, even though of course it’s not been the easiest start to the year for us. You know, we are not where we want to be in terms of performance. I think that’s no secret. But yeah, this weekend has been really, really nice.
“Sometimes you have those kind of moments where you get some really great laps out of it. And luckily, of course, also the balance got a bit more together throughout that qualifying. So yeah, we just have to keep on working.
“I mean it’s nice, but I’m a bit of a person—I don’t listen to the positives and the negatives. I’m just in the middle, you know. So I just focus on my own performances and yeah, just keep working, keep grinding.”
As for title implications with both McLaren drivers now having claimed poles and wins this season, Verstappen remained philosophical when asked if it felt like a three-way title fight.
“I don’t know. I mean, it’s a very long season,” he explained.
“A lot of things can happen, right? I think what is important is that you always try to just maximise your performances. That’s the only thing that you can control. So that’s what I’ll try to do, and we’ll see in—what is it, 21 races—where we’re at. Good or bad.”
The perfect Honda send-off
The emotional significance of winning the final Honda home race wasn’t lost on Verstappen. When asked to reflect on the relationship with Honda, Verstappen offered heartfelt thoughts.
“Yeah. I mean, of course, already yesterday was a very beautiful day for us. And then of course to follow it up with a win is just fantastic. Honestly, the relationship that we’ve had with Honda has been amazing.
“I’ve really enjoyed my time with them—how they also work, how professional they are and how dedicated they are. They’ve given me so much. Together, we’ve won four Drivers’ Championships and two Constructors’.
“It’s been unbelievable and also, of course, something you’ll never forget. And it did cross my mind while driving as well. I said it would be insane to win here today, also for Honda on their track as well. So maybe gave that extra motivation to try to stay ahead. But yeah, it’s a proper send-off. I mean, we couldn’t have wished for a better weekend to be honest.”
