2022 Formula One Japanese Grand Prix

guenther steiner at the japanese grand prix.jpg

Will Max Verstappen become World Champion this weekend?


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One of the most exciting circuits on the F1 calendar will host the racing action this weekend as the field battles for late season points in Japan.

Suzuka’s complex layout has given F1 fans exciting races for decades, and this weekend’s grand prix looks to be no exception. The 2022 cars have allowed for longer and closer battles compared to recent years, and we can expect mid-pack scrapping in Japan this Sunday.

This is the first trip Formula 1 has made to Japan since 2019. Last time out, Sebastian Vettel was the winner, and Lewis Hamilton recorded the fastest lap. Neither of these facts is likely to repeat based on the 2022 results to date. Vettel has struggled for consistency and pace this season, and Hamilton has been unable to reach the championship form we’ve come to expect from him.

Just five races remain in the 2022 season. After Japan, the teams will face off in the United States, Mexico, Brazil and Abu Dhabi. Behind the dominant Red Bull and Max Verstappen, rankings of cars and teams from P2 downward should see some reordering before the end of the season. Teams will be putting their best cars forward, and drivers will be trying to extract the most from them to score late season points.

The most recent F1 race, last weekend in Singapore, produced interesting results and saw Sergio Perez maintain a lead throughout nearly the entire race despite frequent safety cars and virtual safety cars in drying conditions.

The cars winding through the legendary S-curves and ripping through 130R flat out should provide exciting racing action this weekend. What are your predictions for the results? Let us know in the comments below.

Image via: Haas F1
About author
Mike Smith
I have been obsessed with sim racing and racing games since the 1980's. My first taste of live auto racing was in 1988, and I couldn't get enough ever since. Lead writer for RaceDepartment, and owner of SimRacing604 and its YouTube channel. Favourite sims include Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2, Automobilista 2, DiRT Rally 2 - On Twitter as @simracing604

Comments

Don't care who wins, but wouldn't mind seeing an interesting & clean race for a change.
Somehow I doubt that's going to happen, even at this greatest of tracks.
 
I did kinda hope that Mick would retain his seat but he's costin them a fortune in parts... too many $$$ per point.
So my choice would be Nico Hulkenberg for the seat alongside K Mag, there should be some fireworks but I believe the team will benefit from the experience and consistency that the two would bring, but where could Danny Ric go?
Would be weird to have Danny lose out on a seat as a multiple race winner while Hulk gets one just to lose out on a couple more podiums...
 
Would be weird to have Danny lose out on a seat as a multiple race winner while Hulk gets one just to lose out on a couple more podiums...
Ricciardo is having a very poor season and his race winnings were in a car that could win races. Hulkenberg has never driven a race winning car as far as I know? I like both drivers and wouldn’t mind Hulkenberg getting another chance in F1.
 
Premium
I think any other weekend, Verstappen's mistake in quali 3 is a penalty, not just a verbal. Probably any other driver this weekend as well, thinking about it. I suspect the FIA and Stewards will be doing everything they can to not be part of deciding the championship, this year at least.
 
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Ricciardo is having a very poor season and his race winnings were in a car that could win races. Hulkenberg has never driven a race winning car as far as I know? I like both drivers and wouldn’t mind Hulkenberg getting another chance in F1.
Mee too, don't get me wrong. I just think out of Haas' perspective this is a weird choice since both of them had their chance in F1. Daniel actually walked away from a winning team because he could not handle Max and Nico had plenty of time to convince one to take him on. I like them but maybe they both are out for a reason? Personally I would prefer Hulk finally getting that podium, I just wanted to point out that Daniel actually has achieved more.
 
I think any other weekend, Verstappen's mistake in quali 3 is a penalty, not just a verbal. Probably any other driver this weekend as well, thinking about it. I suspect the FIA and Stewards will be doing everything they can to not be part of deciding the championship, this year at least.
Hamilton amongst others have just had reprimands for impedeing other drivers. The Max and Lando incident looks worse because Max gave the throttle a bit too much of a boot, wasn't intentional.

What's causes it all is all this faff about getting a clear space for a quali run. Although no idea what the solution could be
 
I think any other weekend, Verstappen's mistake in quali 3 is a penalty, not just a verbal. Probably any other driver this weekend as well, thinking about it. I suspect the FIA and Stewards will be doing everything they can to not be part of deciding the championship, this year at least.
I don’t think a penalty would have any impact on Max winning the championship this year, only when he will win it. Since both drivers were not on a fast lap, Lando overtaking Max at that part of the lap was strange and Max probably did not get a warning from his race engineer, so had no idea Lando was going to pass him at high speed. So I think just a reprimand was just fine in this case.
 
Even if Haas would like to have Ricciardo in their team, why would Ricciardo say yes? He doesn’t need the money and what would bring him driving for a team that is not even capable of scoring podiums? Much better to take a year off, enjoy your free time and look for opportunities next year.

Don‘t forget that Ricciardo was rated as one of the top drivers a few years ago. Driving for a team with a car that doesn’t suit you doesn’t make you suddenly a bad driver.
 
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Hamilton amongst others have just had reprimands for impedeing other drivers. The Max and Lando incident looks worse because Max gave the throttle a bit too much of a boot, wasn't intentional.

What's causes it all is all this faff about getting a clear space for a quali run. Although no idea what the solution could be
What would help is ditch this stupid Qualy format made for people with atention span issues, and go back to the 1 hour format we had before, when drivers had time to go around and do their laps without having to queue and trip over each other like it happens today.

This convoluted crap we have now is not even exciting, because all you see is the start finish line, and all the drivers crossing, with a commentator shouting sector times that we can't see, because there is only time to focus on who is crossing the line, and the whole thing is over before you know it, and then you only get to see the pole lap after the fact.
 
Premium
The Max and Lando incident looks worse because Max gave the throttle a bit too much of a boot, wasn't intentional.
That's kind of what I meant though, to me it was worse than a "normal" not allowing aomeone past impede, because he lost control of the car after a blind corner when he gave it some unexpected welly. Definitely wasn't deliberate, but careless and unsafe moving right across the entire width of the track out of control. Norris's pace wouldn't have been an issue if Verstappen hadn't decided to drop his clog, lose control and lurch across, blocking the entire track. If Latifi or someone generally regarded as a lesser driver had done exactly the same thing, I'd expect the comments about that conduct to be nothing short of scathing. Done now, though and prob won't be a bearing on the race or champ.
 
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Premium
I think any other weekend, Verstappen's mistake in quali 3 is a penalty, not just a verbal. Probably any other driver this weekend as well, thinking about it. I suspect the FIA and Stewards will be doing everything they can to not be part of deciding the championship, this year at least.
Personally, I think your suspicions are unfounded and maybe based on bias. I wouldn't have been surprised (or upset) if Max had been given a penalty but I guess there were other factors, plus, maybe the reprimand is in line with similar incidents involving other drivers before? Also, maybe Lando was maybe a bit impetuous (I am a fan of Lando by the way) when you consider all drivers had previously slowed in that section in prep for their quick laps .
 
I think any other weekend, Verstappen's mistake in quali 3 is a penalty, not just a verbal. Probably any other driver this weekend as well, thinking about it. I suspect the FIA and Stewards will be doing everything they can to not be part of deciding the championship, this year at least.
The championship has already been decided. All that can change is WHEN. Unless Max Drops dead from sudden covid vacine heart failure, there is really no chance for any of the drivers to catch him.
 
Premium
The championship has already been decided. All that can change is WHEN. Unless Max Drops dead from sudden covid vacine heart failure, there is really no chance for any of the drivers to catch him.
No, I agree. It's more that after last year, and with the ongoing money cap investigation still ongoing and now delayed until after this race, I would just expect the FIA to want to steer clear of ANY decisions that could be construed as interference in a potential champ decider, no matter how minor. A 5 place penalty would likely as not have precisely zero effect on the race results, Red Bull look to have the pace to handle anything thrown at them.
 

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