This year marked the 32nd Grand Prix at the famed Suzuka circuit, and it has been a few years since F1 was last held there in 2019. 48.39% of the winners have been from pole position while starting from 2nd has a close 35.48% chance of taking the win.
It is no surprise that Vettel and Hamilton have the greatest success at this circuit for this generation of drivers. Yet, we all know where they stand this season. This season will either go to Max or the FIA (if they exceed the budget cap by more than 5% and are penalized heavily.)
It is of note that 6 out of the 22 drivers have zero or one race experience at this GP, with Albon being the more successful newbie here.
Norris continues to rocket upward for McLaren. His performance is coming up to Leclerc’s, and one can imagine the battle if he has the same car as Charles. The gap between Norris and Ricciardo is also growing rapidly, this is of no surprise by now. However, the question is how Oscar* would match Norris’ performance rate next year. With all the drama surrounding Oscar, if he can not match or be in a reasonable margin to Norris, his reputation will be over before the summer break. The pressure is certainly stacked against him, and Norris may not be as generous as he was to Ricciardo.
* Correction made Oct 7: Not De Vires but Oscar.
Suzuka will be an exciting race to watch this weekend, and while there are consistent performers, let’s be honest, when all is said and done, the only certainty is this… sometimes Latifi…
Meme of the Grid:
Check out The Sample! One of my favourite newsletter discovery tools. It lets you sample other newsletters depending on your interests. Try it out!