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Split Friday for the team: Good data collection in FP1, waiting for the track to dry out in FP2

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Formula 1 is back on the iconic track in Suzuka, the only figure-of-eight style circuit on the calendar. The team has been hard at work since Melbourne to understand how we can deliver more consistent performance from the W15.

In FP1, the team was able to collect more good data to better understand the new car, but the running in the second session of the day was affected by the weather.

The Japanese Grand Prix takes place for the first time in April, moving from its traditional slot in the latter half of the season. As a result, the temperatures on Friday were a little cooler than we are used to in October and FP2 started in slightly damp conditions.

After 15 minutes, another shower set in, but it quickly moved on, allowing the track to slowly dry out again as the session progressed.

Nevertheless, the running was very limited as the teams wanted to save their five sets of Intermediate tyres for the rest of the weekend instead of using them up in FP2.

Lewis was one of the few drivers to take to the drying track on Soft tyres in the final minutes of the session. He finished FP2 in second place behind Oscar Piastri (McLaren).

The fastest time of the day was set by Max Verstappen (Red Bull) in the dry first session. George and Lewis finished just under five tenths behind in fourth and fifth place.

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Lots of data gathering in FP1

In FP1 the team focussed on long runs to continue to further our learnings from last weekend in Melbourne, rather than chase ultimate race pace.

The session was interrupted by a red flag when Logan Sargeant (Williams) went off the track in turn seven and crashed into the barriers. However, he immediately reported that he was okay.

The team then had to evaluate our run plan for the rest of the session as we wanted to get the most running we could out of the remaining time.

Despite the interruption, both drivers were able to gather lots of good data on both single lap and long runs. Overall, it was a positive session with George finishing in P4, followed by Lewis in P5.

After an encouraging day overall, the team is now concentrating on analysing and optimising the data collected overnight in order to build on it for the rest of the weekend.

The team will return to the track on Saturday at 11:30 local time (03:30 UK time) for FP3, before qualifying gets underway at 15:00 local time (07:00 UK time).

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George Russell

We performed better than we expected to in FP1. That was a pleasant surprise, and the car was feeling really nice to drive. Both Lewis and I were happy with the overall balance. The W15 has been performing better when the conditions are cooler though, so that is a note of caution. Our focus today was trying several test items and experiments to make the car more consistent in variable conditions. Time will tell whether these have had the intended impact and it was frustrating that we couldn’t evaluate these further in the afternoon.

It’s such a shame for those here and watching at home that we couldn’t do much running in FP2. I hope we can find a solution for these moments and conditions. It’s not the first time it has happened, and it won’t be the last. Looking at tomorrow, Qualifying will be interesting as it’s a clear single lap tyre. Most drivers may only have three or four sets of the Soft compound so you will have to ensure you nail each and every lap.

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Lewis Hamilton

FP1 was a great session for us. It was the best session for us so far this year and the best the car has felt. I felt very positive and excited heading into FP2 as this is a circuit that every driver loves to drive. It was a shame not to get much running in, therefore. In the last two years here, we’ve struggled with a car that has had an inconsistent balance and has been difficult to drive. The team has done a lot of great work since Australia, and we seemed to hit the ground running today. The car was definitely in a sweeter spot. We’ve got a better baseline to start from this weekend and hopefully we can build on that.

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Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

We've done a lot of work over the last week focused on making the car more consistent. We've seen across the first three races that we have sessions where we look strong, but when it comes to qualifying and the race, we've fallen short of our expectations. It's too early to say whether we've made the progress that we are hoping for, but it is encouraging that the drivers are happier with the feel of the car. The data also suggests that we have got the tyres in a better window. It was a shame for the fans that weather reduced the amount of running in the afternoon session, but there is plenty of opportunity to get laps in tomorrow morning.

2024 Japanese GP FP2 Results

<table><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>Oscar Piastri</td><td>McLaren</td><td>1:34.725</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>Lewis Hamilton</td><td>Mercedes-AMG</td><td>1:35.226</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Charles Leclerc</td><td>Ferrari</td><td>1:38.760</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>Yuki Tsunoda</td><td>Racing Bulls</td><td>1:40.946</td><td>8</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>Daniel Ricciardo</td><td>Racing Bulls</td><td>1:41.913</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>Lando Norris</td><td>McLaren</td><td>1:44.977</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>Carlos Sainz Jr.</td><td>Ferrari</td><td>1:52.579</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>Nico Hülkenberg</td><td>Haas</td><td>1:55.179</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>Valtteri Bottas</td><td>Sauber</td><td>1:56.059</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>Esteban Ocon</td><td>Alpine</td><td>1:59.113</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td>Alexander Albon</td><td>Williams</td><td>2:03.821</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>12</td><td>Kevin Magnussen</td><td>Haas</td><td>2:30.472</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>13</td><td>Zhou Guanyu</td><td>Sauber</td><td>2:03.317</td><td>7</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>Max Verstappen</td><td>Red Bull</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>15</td><td>Logan Sargeant</td><td>Williams</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>16</td><td>Pierre Gasly</td><td>Alpine</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>17</td><td>Sergio Pérez</td><td>Red Bull</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>18</td><td>Fernando Alonso</td><td>Aston Martin</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>19</td><td>Lance Stroll</td><td>Aston Martin</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr><tr><td>20</td><td>George Russell</td><td>Mercedes-AMG</td><td>-</td><td>0</td></tr></tbody></table>

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2024 Japanese GP FP1 Results

<table><tbody><tr><td>1</td><td>Max Verstappen</td><td>Red Bull</td><td>1:30.056</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>2</td><td>Sergio Pérez</td><td>Red Bull</td><td>1:30.237</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>3</td><td>Carlos Sainz Jr.</td><td>Ferrari</td><td>1:30.269</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>4</td><td>George Russell</td><td>Mercedes-AMG</td><td>1:30.530</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>5</td><td>Lewis Hamilton</td><td>Mercedes-AMG</td><td>1:30.543</td><td>23</td></tr><tr><td>6</td><td>Charles Leclerc</td><td>Ferrari</td><td>1:30.558</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>7</td><td>Fernando Alonso</td><td>Aston Martin</td><td>1:30.599</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>8</td><td>Oscar Piastri</td><td>McLaren</td><td>1:31.165</td><td>23</td></tr><tr><td>9</td><td>Yuki Tsunoda</td><td>Racing Bulls</td><td>1:31.230</td><td>20</td></tr><tr><td>10</td><td>Lando Norris</td><td>McLaren</td><td>1:31.240</td><td>22</td></tr><tr><td>11</td><td>Esteban Ocon</td><td>Alpine</td><td>1:31.935</td><td>19</td></tr><tr><td>12</td><td>Alexander Albon</td><td>Williams</td><td>1:31.943</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>13</td><td>Nico Hülkenberg</td><td>Haas</td><td>1:31.958</td><td>19</td></tr><tr><td>14</td><td>Valtteri Bottas</td><td>Sauber</td><td>1:32.054</td><td>17</td></tr><tr><td>15</td><td>Lance Stroll</td><td>Aston Martin</td><td>1:32.055</td><td>17</td></tr><tr><td>16</td><td>Ayumu Iwasa</td><td>Racing Bulls</td><td>1:32.103</td><td>22</td></tr><tr><td>17</td><td>Pierre Gasly</td><td>Alpine</td><td>1:32.277</td><td>23</td></tr><tr><td>18</td><td>Zhou Guanyu</td><td>Sauber</td><td>1:32.638</td><td>18</td></tr><tr><td>19</td><td>Kevin Magnussen</td><td>Haas</td><td>1:32.803</td><td>21</td></tr><tr><td>20</td><td>Logan Sargeant</td><td>Williams</td><td>1:33.204</td><td>10</td></tr></tbody></table>

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