Dutch driver Max Verstappen, four -time world champion, won his first Formula 1 season 2025 win by beating the Japan Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Verstappen, which started from pole position, surpassed the two McLarens, Briton Lando Norris and Australian Oscar Pistri, to which he exceeded 1.4 and 2.1 seconds respectively.
“You filed perfectly, a great job,” celebrated Red Bull chief Christian Horner, congratulating his driver on the radio.
“It’s wonderful! We show that we never gave up. It’s fantastic. Our weekend was amazing,” answered Verstappen.
‘Mad Max’, who won for the fourth consecutive time in Suzuka, reached the 64th career victory and the first of the season.
In the overall classification of the Pilot World Cup, Verstappen is now the second place, a point behind Norris, and Pistri occupies third place, 13 points from teammate.
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) finished fourth in front of the two Mercedes, British George Russell and Italian Andrea Kimi Antonelli, while his British teammate Lewis Hamilton was in seventh position.
Another highlight of the race was the French rookie Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls) who ended eighth and scored the first four points of his F1 career in which his third Grand Prix was.
After leaving the track during the presentation return in Australia and 11th place in China due to a bad strategy of his team, the 20 -year -old Parisian, seventh on the grid, was finally rewarded.
Brazilian pilot Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber), who had dropped 17th on the grid, ended the race in 19th, just behind another Frenchman, Esteban Ocon (Haas).
For Norris, the race key was at the qualifying session, in which Verstappen shone with an excellent quick lap that was the circuit record and its first pole of the year.
“Max made a good race today, he did not make any mistakes,” said Norris, who dropped second on the grid.
Local idol, Japanese Yuki Tsunoda, has only been able to finish in 12th in his first race riding a Red Bull car since replacing Liam Lawson, which ended 17th by Racing Bulls.
The two Spaniards could not punctuate; Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) closed the race in 11th and Carlos Sainz on 14th.
