Japanese GP highlights as Verstappen dominates and Red Bull exploit FIA loophole

2 hours ago 08:02 Charlie Gordon That’s all for our live race coverage, folks. Head on over to our rolling F1 blog HERE to be kept up to date with all the latest fallout from the Japanese Grand Prix. 2 hours ago 07:59 Charlie Gordon 1. Red Bull – 623 2. Mercedes – 305 3. Ferrari – 285 4. Aston Martin – 221 5. McLaren – 172 6. Alpine – 84 7. Williams – 21 8. Haas – 12 9. Alfa Romeo – 10 10. AlphaTauri – 5 2 hours ago 07:56 Charlie Gordon 1. Max Verstappen – 400 2. Sergio Perez – 223 3. Lewis Hamilton – 190 4. Fernando Alonso – 174 5. Carlos Sainz – 150 6. Charles Leclerc – 135 7. Lando Norris – 115 8. George Russell – 115 9. Oscar Piastri – 57 10. Lance Stroll – 47 11. Pierre Gasly – 46 12. Esteban Ocon – 38 13. Alex Albon – 21 14. Nico Hulkenberg – 9 15. Valtteri Bottas – 6 16. Zhou Guanyu – 4 17. Yuki Tsunoda – 3 18. Kevin Magnussen – 3 19. Liam Lawson – 2 20. Logan Sargeant – 0 21. Nyck de Vries – 0 22. Daniel Ricciardo – 0 2 hours ago 07:53 Charlie Gordon 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 2. Lando Norris (McLaren) 3. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 5. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 6. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 7. George Russell (Mercedes) 8. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 9. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) 10. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 11. Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri) 12. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) 13. Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo) 14. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) 15. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) [DNF]. Alex Albon (Williams) [DNF]. Logan Sargeant (Williams) [DNF]. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) [DNF]. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) [DNF]. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) Max Verstappen was victorious at the Japanese Grand Prix (Image: GETTY) 2 hours ago 07:35 Charlie Gordon It was dominant from start to finish from Max Verstappen, and Red Bull have mathematically sealed the Constructors’ Championship in Japan. Lando Norris picks up second place for the second weekend running, and Oscar Piastri takes third to cap off a superb race for McLaren. Full results to follow. 3 hours ago 07:30 Charlie Gordon George Russell has now tumbled down to P7, having been in fifth just a few moments ago. Mercedes ordered him to swap positions with Lewis Hamilton, who was quicker and on fresher tyres. But that left Russell in the jaws of Carlos Sainz, who promptly overtook him within a couple of laps. “You want to play the team game, but [Hamilton] pushed me off the track earlier,” said Russell over the team radio. “It’s the least he can do.” 3 hours ago 07:18 Charlie Gordon After watching 25 laps from the pits, Sergio Perez returned to the track to complete one lap and serve his five-second time penalty, before being asked to come back in and retire the car for a second time. A curious turn of events in the Red Bull garage, but one which will ultimately help them going forward as Perez has paid his dues and won’t be penalised in Qatar next time out. Sergio Perez had an eventful Japanese Grand Prix (Image: GETTY) 3 hours ago 07:15 Charlie Gordon George Russell plumped for an audacious one-stop strategy in Japan and it’s not paying off. The Englishman has 12 laps to coax his Mercedes home, but Lando Norris is already past him into second and Oscar Piastri is now knocking on the door. Once he’s past, it’ll be the turn of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton to close the gap. 3 hours ago 07:05 Charlie Gordon Max Verstappen is leading the Japanese Grand Prix by a healthy margin as we head towards the closing stages of this race. The order behind him is liable to change due to the number of different pit-stop strategies in play. But the top 10 is currently as follows… 1. Max Verstappen 2. Lando Norris 3. Oscar Piastri 4. Carlos Sainz 5. George Russell 6. Charles Leclerc 7. Lewis Hamilton 8. Fernando Alonso 9. Esteban Ocon 10. Nico Hulkenberg 3 hours ago 06:58 Charlie Gordon Sergio Perez has spent the past 25 minutes or so feeling sorry for himself in the pits. But the Mexican has just been seen getting back into his car, and he is about to be sent back out to gather some intel for the remainder of the race. Perez is set to re-emerge so that he can serve his five-second time penalty inconsequentially and avoid it carrying over into a future race. The FIA would have been at liberty to impose a grid penalty next time out in Qatar if the five-second punishment was not served. 3 hours ago 06:56 Charlie Gordon Williams’ nightmare weekend is complete – Alex Albon is in the pits to retire his car just minutes after Logan Sargeant was asked to do the same. The duo join Lance Stroll, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez in retiring, but there is movement in the Red Bull garage… 3 hours ago 06:54 Charlie Gordon Lando Norris has just spent a couple of laps complaining over the team radio that he was considerably quicker than team-mate Oscar Piastri. Norris was finally allowed through on the pit straight, and he has opened up a two-and-a-half-second advantage over the Aussie already. Max Verstappen still comfortably ahead and sailing towards a win. 3 hours ago 06:50 Charlie Gordon We’re on lap 26 of a 53-lap race and we’ve already got four drivers permanently in the pits. Just a few minutes ago Lance Stroll joined Segio Perez and Valtteri Bottas in bowing out. Now, Logan Sargeant’s race has ended early after a torrid weekend of racing. The American was handed two separate time penalties in Suzuka and had to start today’s Grand Prix from the pit lane. 3 hours ago 06:45 Charlie Gordon Lance Stroll has joined Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas in the pits – none of the three drivers will finish this Japanese Grand Prix. Stroll failed to make it through Q1 on Saturday and fortunes have not improved on Sunday, bowing out due to an issue with his Aston Martin. Team-mate Fernando Alonso is still fighting, currently in P9. 3 hours ago 06:37 Charlie Gordon Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are still in the midst of a ferocious battle on track. Russell seems to have the superior pace at this stage of the race, and he is wondering why the team are wasting time scrapping each other instead of other competitors. “Who do we want to fight here, each other or the others?” he said spikily. Hamilton has now been called into the pits to set Russell free. Verstappen currently in second with Russell first, but the Mercedes man is yet to pit. 3 hours ago 06:35 Charlie Gordon The damage to Sergio Perez’s brand new front wing has seen him called into the pits by Red Bull, who have asked him to retire from the race. A Sunday to forget for the 33-year-old, who will score no points this weekend, making Max Verstappen’s job of winning the title next time out in Qatar that much easier. 4 hours ago 06:31 Charlie Gordon To say it has been a troubled start by Sergio Perez would be a huge understatement. He has now made contact with Haas star Kevin Magnussen, spinning him around and sustaining more damage to his own front wing. Perez could get another penalty for the incident, and he is complaining over the team radio that his Red Bull ‘does not feel right’. 4 hours ago 06:25 Charlie Gordon Sergio Perez has been hit with a five-second time penalty after a brief investigation for breaching safety car rules. The Mexican came out of the pits ahead of Alex Albon before giving the place back. Perez is down in 13th on the hard-compound tyre, and he’ll have to get ahead of Kevin Magnussen soon if he is to make an impact at the top-end of the field. 4 hours ago 06:22 Charlie Gordon Valtteri Bottas has retired from the race due to his damaged Alfa Romeo. The Finn was fuming at being forced off track by Logan Sargeant a few minutes prior, and the Williams man has been handed a five-second time penalty for the incident. Sargeant was already due to serve a 10-second penalty for breaching third car rules after qualifying on Saturday. Valtteri Bottas was an early retiree in Japan (Image: GETTY) 4 hours ago 06:18 Charlie Gordon Lewis Hamilton and George Russell just risked a Mercedes disaster with a wheel-to-wheel battle in Suzuka. Russell first squeezed past his team-mate at Turn 17, but Hamilton picked up a slipstream on the straight and snatched the place straight back. Heart-in-mouth stuff for Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, who will be watching on from afar. 4 hours ago 06:14 Charlie Gordon Sergio Perez’s downward spiral at the start of this race is showing no signs of slowing down. After colliding with Lewis Hamilton and coming into the pits for a new front wing, the Mexican re-emerged ahead of Alex Albon before giving the place back. Perez has been noted for a safety car infringement, which could result in a penalty if it’s taken further. One to keep an eye on. 4 hours ago 06:08 Charlie Gordon There was heavy contact between Lewis Hamilton and Sergio Perez going into Turn 1 as part of a chaotic start to this race. The Mercedes man has sustained ‘very small damage’, according to his team, but Perez is in the pits receiving a new front wing. The Mexican is back out in P18 – a disastrous start. 4 hours ago 06:03 Charlie Gordon Max Verstappen had to use all his racecraft to hold off the McLarens into the first corner. Oscar Piastri was squeezed out wide, with Lando Norris going through to take second for the time being. Contact between Valtteri Bottas, Alex Albon and Esteban Ocon has left debris on the track and brought out a safety car – Bottas is heading into the pits. A fast-paced start but it’s mission accomplished for Verstappen. 4 hours ago 06:01 Charlie Gordon The grid are on their out-lap and the Japanese Grand Prix is poised to get underway any minute. A reminder that it’s Max Verstappen against Oscar Piastri going into Turn 1. If the Aussie can’t get the move done, McLaren don’t give themselves much chance of catching the dominant Dutchman. There are plenty of other battles to be fought further back in the pack. Action to follow. 4 hours ago 05:52 Charlie Gordon Lando Norris has admitted that McLaren will need to make their move early to have any chance of upsetting Max Verstappen in Japan. He starts third, behind team-mate Oscar Piastri in second. And he jokingly advised the Aussie to channel his inner Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna by colliding with Verstappen into Turn 1. “I mean, if he’s leading by Turn 2, there’s not a lot you can really do,” said Norris. “I don’t know. Oscar, if you want to emulate [Alain] Prost and [Ayrton] Senna into Turn 1, you can do that happily. That would be lovely for me.” Lando Norris cracked up Max Verstappen during his press conference (Image: GETTY) 4 hours ago 05:45 Charlie Gordon Red Bull can mathematically sew up the Constructors’ Championship today if they score more points than Mercedes and make sure Ferrari don’t outscore them by 24. Pipping the Silver Arrows shouldn’t be a problem, with both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez starting ahead of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Meanwhile, something would have to go seriously wrong for Red Bull if Ferrari better them by such a margin, with Charles Leclerc in P4 and Carlos Sainz sixth. Verstappen’s quest for the individual title, which remains an inevitability, cannot end in Suzuka, but he will have an opportunity to rubber-stamp his third Drivers’ Championship in Qatar next month. 4 hours ago 05:40 Charlie Gordon The weekend has gone from bad to worse for Logan Sargeant, who crashed out in Q1 on Saturday while pressure mounts on his F1 future. The FIA have slapped him with a 10-second penalty to be served at his first pit stop, and he will have to start today’s race from the pit lane – both due to breaking third car rules. Sargeant is the only full-time driver on the grid without a championship point at this stage of the season, and he is up against it in the fight to open his account in Japan. Logan Sargeant crashed his Williams in qualifying on Saturday (Image: GETTY) 4 hours ago 05:38 Charlie Gordon This time almost a year ago, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez put together a Red Bull shutout at Suzuka, with Ferrari star Charles Leclerc finishing third – more than 30 seconds behind the victorious Dutchman. There were strong showings for Esteban Ocon in P4 and Sebastian Vettel in P6, while Nicholas Latifi picked up a surprise points finish in ninth. Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon will be hoping for better luck this time around as neither of them managed to finish the Japanese Grand Prix in 2022. 5 hours ago 05:33 Charlie Gordon 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 2. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) 3. Lando Norris (McLaren) 4. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) 5. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) 6. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) 7. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 8. George Russell (Mercedes) 9. Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) 10. Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) 11. Liam Lawson (AlphaTauri) 12. Pierre Gasly (Alpine) 13. Alex Albon (Williams) 14. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) 15. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) 16. Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) 17. Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) 18. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) 19. Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo) 20. Logan Sargeant (Williams) Oscar Piastri starts on the front row in Suzuka (Image: GETTY) 5 hours ago 05:30 Charlie Gordon Max Verstappen proved the class of the field in qualifying on Saturday, setting a time more than half a second quicker than second-place Oscar Piastri and seven-tenths faster than his team-mate, Sergio Perez. There were no major surprises on a day that saw Aston Martin and Mercedes struggle, but to get up to speed before today’s race, read Express Sport ‘s qualifying report right HERE . 5 hours ago 05:16 Charlie Gordon Good morning and welcome to Express Sport ‘s live coverage of the Japanese Grand Prix. It’s bright and early in the UK but settle in for a busy morning of action – the race is less than an hour away and we’ve got you covered. Build-up to follow…