S Poddar
Max Verstappen was not bothered about the absence of fireworks and carnage at the Japanese Grand Prix this season. The reigning world champion demonstrated a cold masterclass at Suzuka, withstanding relentless pressure from McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to claim the victory for the fourth consecutive time at the historic circuit.
Suzuka is among the toughest tracks on the Formula One calendar, a circuit where each lap probes a driver’s nerve and judgment. Verstappen didn’t merely respond to the questions—she dominated the test. Under merciless harassment from Norris and Piastri, the Dutchman remained unbroken, taking victory by marginally more than one second in a grand prix light on passes but laden with tension.
Verstappen dominated from the start. Taking pole on his qualifying lap after a standout weekend, he was able to protect his advantage on the inside through the first corner and never relaxed. With all the inconsistency the Red Bull RB21 has at times seemed capable of in the course of his season, that was a reclaiming of the kind of supremacy that’s dominated so much of his recent period of dominance.
It was also a pivotal moment in the championship race. This victory puts Verstappen just one point behind Norris in the drivers’ championship. Only weeks earlier, following a difficult opening to the season in Australia, the notion of Verstappen fighting his way back to the front of the championship seemed more optimistc than pragmatic. But now, he’s very much in the running.
Most of that reversal started with his pole lap on Saturday—a piece of magic that beat Norris by a hundredth of a second. That thin margin was the difference. With track position so high on demand and overtaking hard on the resurfaced Suzuka circuit, being ahead mattered. Verstappen had that advantage at the start and, with steely determination, ensured he never relinquished it.
The weekend began fairly difficult but we didn’t relinquish. We were able to win this race because starting from pole,” explained Verstappen later. “We still need to do plenty but it does indicate that when we focus every little thing correctly we can actually be up towards the front.
The race itself played out with order rather than disorder. It may not have had wheel-to-wheel drama, but the battle was no less intense. Norris and Piastri never gave Verstappen a chance to catch his breath, staying in striking distance for almost the whole race. Their only genuine chance came during the pit window, when McLaren hoped strategy could provide them with a route past.
But their decisive moment came not their way. As Verstappen and Norris pitted on the same lap, they came side by side at the pit exit. Norris swooped forward attempting to pass on the inside, but Verstappen had track position and maintained position. Norris went onto the grass briefly, and the two cars came so close to hitting in the flash, heart-stopping instant.
Norris was initially disappointed, thinking he’d been nudged off course. Verstappen, on his part, thought there just wasn’t room for two cars to rejoin at the same time. The FIA stewards chose to take no further action—a decision that ultimately both drivers acquiesced in. “Hard but fair racing,” Norris later conceded.
The real problem was strategic. By racing both drivers simultaneously, McLaren lost the opportunity to experiment with an undercut aggressive move by Norris. In any case, they had previously experimented with using Piastri as part of a defensive ploy, and in that order first, had covered position. Team principal Andrea Stella then explained that tyre life on the new Suzuka surface was so minimal that an alternative strategy would not have brought any tangible benefit—and could have jeopardised Norris losing places.
From then on, Verstappen remained unflappable. Both drivers were on the same hard tyres and it became a matter of fine margins and flawless execution. Red Bull’s team boss Christian Horner summed up Verstappen’s driving as “inch-perfect,” and it was difficult to disagree. Every time Norris attempted to close the gap, Verstappen had just enough speed to keep ahead. Behind them, Piastri stayed in tight formation with his teammate, the three leaders never more than two and a half seconds apart.
Though it lacked drama from overtakes and crashes, the race then turned into a high-speed showdown in discipline and willpower. Verstappen’s ability to come back lap after lap with pressure was the unmistakable stamp of the champion’s heart which has served him well throughout four years of mastery.
There were broader lessons, too. This year’s regulations and tyre characteristics are creating a racing dynamic where qualifying is becoming increasingly vital. Overtaking has become harder again thanks to a resurgence in dirty air on certain tracks, and with Pirelli’s tyres showing little degradation, one-stop strategies are the norm. Suzuka may have underlined this more than any race so far—where Saturday’s pole lap ultimately shaped Sunday’s outcome.
Elsewhere on the grid, there were positives. Yuki Tsunoda, competing in his maiden race as a Red Bull driver after replacing Liam Lawson, lined up 14th and finished 12th—a strong, if uneventful, first outing before his own fans.
Charles Leclerc placed fourth for Ferrari, and George Russell and Mercedes newcomer Kimi Antonelli claimed fifth and sixth respectively. Lewis Hamilton, who never quite got into his rhythm, came in seventh. Isack Hadjar of Racing Bulls impressed with eighth place, while Alex Albon brought points home for Williams in ninth. Haas’s Oliver Bearman, one of the youngest on the grid, finished tenth after a mature and assured drive.
The emphasis of Max Verstappen’s drive was execution, not showy effects. Relentless, accurate, and calm. He has declared categorically that the fight for the title is far from over as the season gathers momentum.
