Max Verstappen beat Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to victory at the Japanese Grand Prix after a contentious pit lane incident and a McLaren team orders controversy.
Verstappen angled his car towards Norris from pole position on the grid to chop the Briton off on the run down to the first turn. Holding the middle of the road to take the racing line, the Dutchman held the first place ahead of an unchanged top 10.
With a one-stop strategy anticipated, the first stint of the race was cagey, with no big gaps opening through the field. It took George Russell to force open the pit window for the frontrunners with a stop from fifth on lap 19, prompting Piastri to cover from third on the following lap.
The threat of the Australian, who had been shadowing the leaders, prompted both Verstappen and Norris to pit on the same lap. It was an unusual strategic play from the British team with Norris just 1.4s off the lead.
Red Bull serviced Verstappen in 3.3s, but McLaren was faster, changing Norris’s four tires in just 2.3s to send him back into pit lane with around half a car of overlap.
Verstappen, marginally ahead, held his line exiting pit lane as the exit jinked to the left. It had the effect of forcing Norris to choose whether to filter behind him or run onto the grass. The Briton chose the latter, but it was ineffective, dropping him to second anyway. Both drivers vociferously argued their points over team radio, but the stewards decided no investigation was necessary.
The gaps stabilized between the top three, who spent the opening phase of the second stint spread across around 3s. By lap 34, however, Piastri had had enough. He put his foot down to string together some personal-best sectors, and by lap 40 he was within 0.6s of his teammate.
“I think I have the pace to get Max,” Piastri said two laps later, suggesting that he be allowed past Norris to pursue the lead.
Despite the team replying that Norris was going as fast as he could, McLaren left its two cars in position.
Norris strung together some personal-best sectors of his own in reply, but it wasn’t enough to get close to Verstappen. After a pause in his assault, Piastri redoubled his efforts, getting to within 0.5s of the sister car, but around this narrow track even DRS wasn’t enough to pass equal machinery.
With the two McLaren cars battling among themselves, Verstappen as free to set his own pace the checkered flag, taking his first victory of the season by 1.4s.
“It was tough,” he said. “Just pushing very hard, especially on the last set. The two McLarens were pushing me very hard.
“I’m incredibly happy. It started off quite tough this weekend, but we didn’t give up. We kept improving the car, and today it was in its best form.”
Norris locked up into the final chicane on the last lap and cut the corner – “cheeky,” radioed Piastri – but the Briton held the place to finish second ahead of his teammate by just 0.7s.
“I guess I just lost out yesterday,” he said. “Max drove a good race today, no mistakes, and the pace was too similar today [between the cars] to do anything more.”
He described his run-in with Verstappen in pit lane as a racing incident.
“He was still ahead,” he said. “Max is the last guy I expect to give me any space – in a good way and in a racing way.”
Piastri rued starting third at a track that makes overtaking difficult.
“I felt like I had really strong pace and if I had the track position, I could go and get Max, but that’s what happens when you qualify behind, unfortunately,” he said.
“At least I asked the question. I think that was a fair response. I think it was a good race, and that’s how we want to go racing.”
The top six were unchanged from their starting positions, with Charles Leclerc finishing fourth ahead of Mercedes teammates Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who became the youngest driver to lead a Formula 1 race during the pit stop window in the middle of the race and the youngest driver to record a fastest lap.
Lewis Hamilton passed Isack Hadjar for seventh on lap 6, and both drivers held those places to the end of the race, the latter scoring his first points in Formula 1.
Alex Albon and Oliver Bearman finished where they started in ninth and 10th to score the final points of the grand prix.
Fernando Alonso led home local favorite Yuki Tsunoda in his Red Bull Racing debut, the Japanese star gaining two places after a lackluster qualifying session left him down the order.
Pierre Gasly finished 13th ahead of Carlos Sainz, Jack Doohan and Nico Hulkenberg.
Liam Lawson, Esteban Ocon and Gabriel Bortoleto finished 17th to 19th after contra-strategies that had them make their sole stops late in the race, but to no gain.
Lance Stroll finished last and a lap down for Aston Martin as the only driver to make two pit stops.
