Japan - Race

For the second time in a row, it was Kimi Antonelli who took the pole, capitalizing on the problem faced by his teammate, George Russell. Mercedes was in the perfect position to keep their 100% win rate for the season, but the hungry McLarens and Ferraris behind them promised that the feat wouldn't come easily. 

The race start was delayed by ten minutes due to barrier repairs. When the time came for the drivers to set off on the third Grand Prix of the season, Oscar Piastri, Charles Leclerc, and Lando Norris immediately sneaked past the two Mercedes, pushing Russell to fourth, and Antonelli to sixth, since the young Italian was also overtaken by Lewis Hamilton. He did retake P5 on lap two and, a few laps later, his teammate gained a few positions by moving past both Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc. 

Although the race started with Antonelli in a better position, a few minutes from its start, it was Russell who had the upper hand. Although he was not able to get the lead, he had moved up to P2, while his teammate was stuck behind the slower cars of his opponents. He overtook Norris on lap 11 and tried to move past Leclerc soon after, but the Monegasque never gave up the position for long. 

Norris was the first driver in the front to change his tires, with both Leclerc and Piastri following in his footsteps and putting Mercedes back in the lead. In order to cover off the Ferrari, Russell was sent into the pits on lap 21, a decision that ended up costing him the race, as only a lap later, Oliver Bearman crashed while trying to overtake Franco Colapinto, bringing out the race's first and only safety car. This gave the drivers who have not yet pitted, such as Antonelli and Hamilton, the perfect opportunity to do so without losing much time. After the small reshuffle, the Italian remained in the lead, with Piastri, Russell, Hamilton, and Leclerc making up the rest of the top five. 

The cars returned to racing on lap 27. Hamilton immediately overtook Russell for P3, souring his compatriots' day even further. The Mercedes driver spent the following laps fighting the Ferrari ahead, only to make a mistake that led him right into the clutches of the one behind. Soon enough, the two Ferraris swapped position, and although Russell did manage to overtake Hamilton, he couldn't quite catch up to Leclerc. The end of the race wasn't the best for either the seven-time World Champion, who, after a long back-and-forth fight, ended up conceding P4 to Norris, or for Lance Stroll, who was told to retire his Aston Martin. While drama unfolded all throughout the grid, Antonelli easily cruised to victory, finishing the race with a 13-second gap to the rest of the field.

Order of the grid:

1. Kimi Antonelli

2. Oscar Piastri

3. Charles Leclerc

4. George Russell

5. Lando Norris

6. Lewis Hamilton

7. Pierre Gasly

8. Max Verstappen

9. Liam Lawson

10. Esteban Ocon

11. Nico Hulkenberg

12. Isack Hadjar

13. Gabriel Bortoleto

14. Arvid Lindblad

15. Carlos Sainz

16. Franco Colapinto 

17. Sergio Perez

18. Fernando Alonso

19. Valtteri Bottas

20. Alex Albon

DNF: Lance Stroll, Oliver Bearman