Verstappen fastest as Sargeant crashes in Japanese GP FP1

Feature Image Credit: Red Bull Content Pool

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen topped the timing boards in the opening practice session at the Japanese Grand Prix as Williams’ Logan Sargeant crashed out. 

Verstappen returned to his usual position at the top of the order, looking to redeem himself and the team following his untimely DNF in Australia, last time out. 

However, the session wasn’t without issue as Sargeant crashed out of the race at its mid-way point, causing a red flag stop.

This would’ve put concern on the faces of those in the Williams garage as the American driver is using the repaired chassis, following Alexander Albon’s FP1 crash in Australia. 

Williams once again does not have a spare chassis to swap over if Sargeant’s chassis is broken beyond repair at the circuit. 

How FP1 ended…

Verstappen was the fastest driver out on track with a 1m 30.056s benchmark lap and he was closely followed by his teammate, Sergio Perez who occupied P2, one-tenth behind.

Ferrari’s race winner, in Australia, Carlos Sainz completed the top three in third with a lap time that was two-tenths slower than Verstappen. 

George Russell was the leading Mercedes in fourth, just ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton who rounded out the top five in P5. 

Charles Leclerc, of Ferrari, led the remaining drivers inside the top 10 in sixth, ahead of Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin), Oscar Piastri (McLaren), Yuki Tsunoda (RB) and Lando Norris (McLaren), respectively. 

Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was the fastest driver in the bottom 10, in P11, 1.8 seconds off the pace of Verstappen. 

Albon, Nico Hulkenberg (Haas), Valtteri Bottas (Kick Sauber) and Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) completed the session in P12, P13, P14 and P15 respectively. They were the last drivers to remain within two seconds of Verstappen’s best time. 

Ayumu Iwasa participated in RB’s first FP1 rookie session, at his home grand prix, where he finished 16th – seven places behind his teammate Tsunoda. Despite this, the rookie had a relatively good and clean session at his home circuit. 

Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Guanyu Zhou (Kick Sauber) and Kevin Magnussen (Haas) completed the field of those who ran the full session. Sergeant occupied P20 having crashed out halfway through. 

Free practice two will start later on today at 3pm local time (7am BST).

That’s all for the article; Verstappen fastest as Sargeant crashes in Japanese GP FP1!

Read more Formula 1 here:

• Ricciardo looking forward to Suzuka return
• McLaren to run ‘Driven by Change’ livery for Japanese GP
• Alonso slapped with drive-through after Australian GP
• Australian GP: Sainz secures victory after recovery as Verstappen retires
• Australian GP: Verstappen takes third consecutive pole in 2024
• Australian GP: Leclerc fastest in final practice ahead of Verstappen and Sainz

Give us a follow on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up with the latest news from the world of Motorsport! You can also support us on Patreon or on our website!

Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.