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    2023 RACE REVIEW

    Scuderia Ferrari leaves Japan with 20 points, courtesy of a fourth place for Charles Leclerc and a sixth for Carlos Sainz, thereby closing the gap to Mercedes in the fight for second place in the Constructors’ classification. Today, on a track that was always going to be a stern test for the SF-23, the team managed to get everything out of its package with a tidy, error-free race.
    Track Temperature39 °C
    Humidity42%
    Air Temperature27 °C
    Wind Speed1 km/h S
    • CHARLES LECLERC
    • Race Result4
    • Fastest Lap1:36.362
    • Pit Stop22.926 s
    • Race Time1:31:42.419
    • Gap from leader+43.998s
    avg speed
    top speed
    avg speed
    top speed
    • CARLOS SAINZ
    • Race Result6
    • Fastest Lap1:36.187
    • Pit Stop23.075 s
    • Race Time1:31:48.642
    • Gap from leader+50.221s
    avg speed
    top speed
    avg speed
    top speed
    Tyres
    Charles Leclerc
    N. Pit Stop2
    Total laps53
    pit
    10
    20
    30
    40
    50
    Race laps
    17
    34
    53
    Percentage set used
    Medium
    64 %
    Hard
    36 %
    CARLOS SAINZ
    N. Pit Stop2
    Total laps53
    pit
    10
    20
    30
    40
    50
    Total laps
    18
    38
    53
    Percentage set used
    Medium
    72 %
    Hard
    28 %
    “
    First of all, congratulations to Red Bull for winning the Constructors’ title. They have done a great job this season. As for our race, I think we did the most we could have done today,
    making up another four points on Mercedes. At a track we knew would be difficult for our car, we always had our situation under control: Charles did well to manage his tyres, while after Carlos was undercut by Lewis (Hamilton), we decided to extend his stint on the Mediums, hoping to get the benefit towards the end. It's very close between ourselves, Mercedes and McLaren and the order can change depending on the track, as we saw in Singapore. Obviously, we can’t be happy with a fourth and a sixth place but, having gained some ground on our closest rivals, we will stay focussed and prepare to give our very best at the upcoming races.
    “
    It was a good race and, even though I am not completely happy with a P4,
    we brought home the best possible result today as McLaren were strong and we just didn’t have the pace to fight them harder. I had a fun battle with George (Russell), who did a great job in managing his tyres, especially the rears, which made it challenging to pass him. I took the opportunity to pass him in turn 1 when I saw a gap and it worked out well. We improved our understanding of this car and what we’ve learned will be useful in the future. It will be interesting to see how our competitors progress in the upcoming races.
    Carlos Sainz
    #Carlos55
    “
    I think today we had better pace than the result suggests.
    We had a very good start and we were quick straight away. During the first two stints I managed my tyres well and had good pace, but we got undercut by Lewis (Hamilton) after the second stop and that compromised my race. I tried to extend my stint to have better tyres at the end and gave everything to close the gap quickly. Unfortunately, the race was a couple of laps too short for me today and we had to settle for sixth. As always, we will analyse the whole weekend when we are back home to see if we could have done something differently, but on the positive side I think the pace was there today. We will regroup and recharge our batteries before heading off to Qatar.
    Charles Leclerc
    #Charles16
    CHARLES LECLERC QUALIFYING SESSIONS
    Q1 - SOFT TIRE
    1:30.393
    Q2 - SOFT TIRE
    1:29.940
    Q3 - SOFT TIRE
    1:29.542
    POSITION
    4
    GAP FROM LEADER
    + 0.665 s
    CARLOS SAINZ QUALIFYING SESSIONS
    Q1 - SOFT TIRE
    1:30.651
    Q2 - SOFT TIRE
    1:30.067
    Q3 - SOFT TIRE
    1:29.850
    POSITION
    6
    GAP FROM LEADER
    + 0.973 s
    “
    I’m happy with my lap, because it was the maximum we could have done today.
    We lost the most in sector 1, so we will look into that and try to understand what we can work on to improve. With the warm temperatures here this year, the risk of overheating is higher than usual, which means that tyre management and strategy will be key tomorrow. Red Bull have been very fast all weekend and McLaren seem to have a similar race pace as we do, so it will be important to get the start right.
    Charles Leclerc
    #Charles16
    “
    It was a difficult qualifying today.
    We knew before coming here that this track would expose our weakness a bit more and, with its high speed characteristics and long corners, we knew it was never going to be easy. I’ve tried many different things and set-ups since yesterday, with the aim of putting the car in a better place, but it clearly didn’t work. I didn’t do a good lap in Q3 either, so we’ll start P6 tomorrow. We’ll fight to get some good points tomorrow and we’ll be ready to grab any opportunities.
    Carlos Sainz
    #Carlos55
    Charles Leclerc Practice sessions
    FP1 - POSITION: 4
    1:32.574
    FP2 - POSITION: 2
    1:31.008
    FP3 - POSITION: 5
    1:31.022
    Carlos Sainz Practice sessions
    FP1 - POSITION: 2
    1:32.273
    FP2 - POSITION: 4
    1:31.237
    FP3 - POSITION: 6
    1:31.137
    Sectors
    Turns
    Max Speed
    DRS
    • LocationSuzuka
    • First GP1987
    • Circuit length5.807 km
    • Race Distance307.471 km
    • Laps53
    • Lap Record1:30.983Lewis Hamilton (2019)
    Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka

    Suzuka is one of the most popular races in the Circus, head to head with Spa-Francorchamps. Not only because of the technical challenge of the track’s 5,807 metres, but also for the great enthusiasm of the Japanese fans for Formula One. The track, owned by Honda, is the only one on the calendar with a “figure 8” layout. Its characteristics are the variety and combination of unique and challenging corners as well as the changes of direction and its inclinations and a third sector with a long straight. That’s why the single-seaters need high aerodynamic efficiency and a perfect set up, if they want to do well on this course. And as if that weren’t enough: for a perfect lap the drivers have to be absolutely precise in every single corner, constantly driving at the limit. Another peculiarity of the track in Suzuka is the sloping finishing line: thus, on the starting grid, the driver has to hold his foot on the brake until he can’t let go the clutch when the red lights are turned off and the race is started.

    Keep an eye on

    The S-bends in the first section call to mind the Maggots-Beckett in Silverstone: a sequence of five bends without a break and rapid changes of direction. The drivers arrive at the first bend with around 245 km/h, taking this first section in fourth or fifth gear. Curve 130R, in the extremely fast third sector, is driven with a fully open throttle at over 300 km/h.

    Did you know that
    The Japanese GP has been held 32 times so far. Four have been held on the Mont Fuji track, including the first race of Formula One here in Japan in 1976, the last race of the season. One race went down in history because of Ferrarista Niki Lauda, who refused to race after his terrible accident at the Nürburgring, when he considered the more than adverse weather conditions at the Japanese GP, handing over the World Title to his competitor James Hunt. Considering that the Japanese GP has traditionally been held towards the end of the season, Suzuka has often been the kingmaker amongst the GPs: after two Drivers’ Titles lost here by Ferrari in 1998 and 1999, the Scuderia was back in 2000 with a win by Michael Schumacher, guaranteeing him the Drivers’ Title, which hadn’t been to Maranello for over 20 years. Suzuka crowned Schumacher again in 2003, while in 2006 the German had to retire due to an engine failure. The Scuderia won 7 times at the Japanese GP, all victories on the track of Suzuka: five with Michael Schumacher (1997, 2000-2002, 2004), one with Rubens Barrichello (2003) and one with Gerhard Berger (1987).

    • 7
      RACE WINS
    • 10
      POLE POSITIONS
    • 7
      FASTEST LAPS
    • 24
      PODIUMS
    yeardrivermodel
    1987BergerF1-87
    1997SchumacherF310 B
    2000SchumacherF1-2000
    2001SchumacherF2001
    2002SchumacherF2002
    2003BarrichelloF2003-GA
    2004SchumacherF2004