Suzuka, sakura, a snoozer F1 in Japan reminds us a great track might not make for a great race Here's why the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix was so boring. Jonathan M. Gitlin Apr 7, 2025 12:34 pm | 0 Red Bull marked the occasion of its last Japanese race with its engine partner Honda with this livery, which calls back to Honda's first F1 car in the 1960s. Credit: Clive Rose/Getty Images Red Bull marked the occasion of its last Japanese race with its engine partner Honda with this livery, which calls back to Honda's first F1 car in the 1960s. Credit: Clive Rose/Getty Images Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreFormula 1 held the third round of its 2025 season at Suzuka in Japan yesterday. The race used to be held toward the end of the calendar, but F1 now visits while the cherry blossoms are blooming, which certainly makes for some good visuals. With a hefty timezone difference between Suzuka and fans in Europe and the US, a difficult decision must be made: Do I stay up all night to watch it live? Let's just say I was glad I did that for qualifying on Friday nightand I was equally glad I slept in the following night and watched the race on Sunday morning.The circuit at Suzuka is one of the few old-school tracks left on the calendar. Along with places like Monaco, Catalyunya, and Spa-Francorchamps, it's a real driver's track; anyone who's played it in Forza, Gran Turismo, or the racing franchise of your choice will know what I mean. The first corner is flat after a long straight. The left-right-left-right of turns 3-7 might be the best set of esses on any track in the world. It even crosses over itself in a figure-eight.Like Spa, though, some bits have become less of a challenge for modern F1 cars with their immense amounts of power and grip. 130R used to be a test of nerve, but now the cars barely notice it as a corner.The problem is that, like at Monaco and Catalunya, there's not really anywhere to overtake. A lot of what we think of as driver's tracks don't actually race very well, and Suzuka is unfortunately one of them. Your best chance is at the Casio triangle, the chicane between 130R and the final corner that leads onto the start-finish straight. If not there, maybe into turn 1maybebut only if you have a big speed advantage. And in 2025, no one has that big of an advantage, even with the effect of the drag-reduction system down that main straight.Cherry blossoms, grass fires An early race in Japan means beautiful cherry blossoms. Clive Rose/Getty Images An early race in Japan means beautiful cherry blossoms. Clive Rose/Getty Images This year, it also meant grass fires, which caused several red flag periods on Friday and Saturday. TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Images This year, it also meant grass fires, which caused several red flag periods on Friday and Saturday. TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Images An early race in Japan means beautiful cherry blossoms. Clive Rose/Getty Images This year, it also meant grass fires, which caused several red flag periods on Friday and Saturday. TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Images On Friday and Saturday, the practice sessions and qualifying were frequently brought to a halt in red flag periods. The cause? The dry grass at trackside catching fire as a result of sparks from F1 cars as they passed by. All F1 cars have to be fitted with a synthetic wooden plank on their underbody that is there to detect if the car has been run too close to the groundLewis Hamilton was disqualified after the race in China for violating this rule. But there are titanium skid blocks that poke out a few millimeters from the plank's surface, and these are what make contact with the track surface when a car bottoms out (and before any wear to the plank), giving off a shower of titanium sparks.Titanium skid blocks were common in the 1980s (pre-plank) and were reintroduced in 2015, perhaps with the show in mind as much as anything else. This is the first time I can remember them causing a problemfive problems, in fact.On Friday, the newly swapped Red Bull and RB drivers got their first experience in the cars they will drive for the rest of the season. Liam Lawson looked much more at home in the RB, a team he raced with for part of last year. The Williams might be the fastest car in the midfield right now, but the RB looks to be more exploitable by the drivers. Meanwhile, Yuki Tusnoda was fast in the Red Bull, within a few tenths of a second of his outrageously skilled teammate Max Verstappen.Thats a new track recordSadly for Tsunoda, one of those grass fire red flags interrupted his run plan during the second of three qualifying sessions, and he did not progress to the top 10. With overtaking as difficult as it is in Suzuka, he looked dejected while being interviewed as he contemplated having to start from 14th. Still, he showed much more comfort in the car than Lawson did during the first two rounds, and Red Bull boss Christian Horner had to answer many uncomfortable questions from the media on the topics of Red Bull's car and its driver-selection process.Throughout the practice sessions, the orange and black McLarens had the measure on everyone else, with Mercedes' George Russell looking quite quick, too. But Q3 is where it really counts, and Verstappen's final lap was one of the all-time greats. Whether you like him or not, the Dutch driver is at a level no one else can match right now, and he dragged his Red Bull to a time it shouldn't have been capable of, breaking the overall track record for Suzuka in the process. F1 prevents me from embedding the YouTube video in this post, but you can view it for yourself on YouTube.Speaking of onboards, we're spoiled with both a visorcarm (pioneered by Formula E, to give credit where it's due) and the gyrocam, which might be the most immersive onboard feed yet. It has a wider field of view than the normal onboard camera and is not as well-stabilized, so you get a much better impression of just how much an F1 car vibrates at speed. Only a few cars carry a gyrocam at each race for now, but I'm eager to see it become more widespread.Neither Lando Norris nor Oscar Piastri in the McLarens had perfect laps; Piastri in particular gave up plenty of time in the first sector of the track. Regardless, all three were separated by just 0.044 seconds, with the gap between Verstappen and Norris being a mere 0.012 seconds. All three were faster than Sebastian Vettel's record time set in 2019. Comparing the onboard feeds, it is awe-inspiring how late Verstappen was able to brakesuccessfullyfor the Casio triangle, maybe 20 m after everyone else.Isack Hadjar, in the other RB, put in something of an inspiring performance, too, not just making it into the top 10 but doing so in severe discomfort while his over-tightened lap belts were threatening his reproductive health. I'm more and more impressed with this young French driver, who certainly never seems to have a boring moment.The reputation of Haas rookie Oliver Bearman went up a few points this weekend as well. Haas brought a new floor for its car to Japan that has successfully solved a handling problema self-described "risky move" by team boss Ayo Komatsu that paid off despite no wind tunnel testing ahead of fitting it to the cars, and Bearman used a line around the final corner that he picked up in iRacing to shave a few extra milliseconds. Japan's F1 fans turn out like no others, and of course there's cosplay. Mark Thompson/Getty Images Japan's F1 fans turn out like no others, and of course there's cosplay. Mark Thompson/Getty Images This was probably my favorite among the elaborate fan helmets. Mark Sutton - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images) This was probably my favorite among the elaborate fan helmets. Mark Sutton - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images) This fan is paying homage to Art Mezzario. Mark Thompson/Getty Images This fan is paying homage to Art Mezzario. Mark Thompson/Getty Images This was probably my favorite among the elaborate fan helmets. Mark Sutton - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images) This fan is paying homage to Art Mezzario. Mark Thompson/Getty Images Mezzario-inspired Red Bull and RB fans. Bryn Lennon - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images Could it be Japan if there were no samurai? Bryn Lennon - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images Don't mess with Red Bull? Mark Thompson/Getty Images That mask is just disturbing. Mark Thompson/Getty Images I hope these fans enjoyed seeing Yuki in the Red Bull at home. Despite his not-great result, he actually did well in what's a very tricky car. Mark Thompson/Getty Images Sometimes you just need a gigantic head. MOHD RASFAN/AFP via Getty Images The hats of Suzuka are something else. Cars with working DRS flaps have been showing up for a few years now. Mark Thompson/Getty Images A pair of McLaren fans get into the spirit. PHILIP FONG/AFP via Getty Images This guy didn't bother with the rest of the car, just the rear wing and DRS flap. Mark Thompson/Getty Images Not only do you get to express your support for the sport or a driver, but you also get to keep the sun and rain off your head. Clive Rose/Getty Images No car at all here, just a big red bull. Mark Thompson/Getty Images Well, it's Japanyou have to include at least a couple of robots, right? Bryn Lennon - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images I wonder what theyre doing with AI?Sim racing is not uncommon among the F1 drivers, although this might be the first instance I remember of one of them mentioning they tried something they learned while gaming. But it also got me wondering.A few years ago, Sony AI built GT Sophy, an AI agent that could play Gran Turismo at a level high enough to beat the very best human players in the world. In the process, GT Sophy learned faster ways around some corners that had eluded all the humans. I'd love to know if any F1 teams have approached Sony AI to try to use those tools to go fasteror perhaps even built their own. As I learned last year, General Motors is making quite good use of AI/ML in motorsport as it competes in IMSA and the World Endurance Championship, IndyCar, and NASCAR, and I have to imagine F1 teams do something similar, even if it seems unlikely that any of them would go on the record with me.ZzzzzzzzzzThe race itself was perhaps best summarized by McLaren's Piastri in the cool-down room after the event. A video wall played the race highlights for the top three finishers as they awaited the podium ceremony, and it didn't take very long. "That's all that happened in that race?" asked Piastri. "For a race that felt like it was pretty flat out, there was nothing," he said.Ironically, a grass fire would have been the best chance for something unusual to happenperhaps while Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli was in the lead as a result of not having made his pit stop yet. A red flag period during an F1 race allows competitors a free tire change in the pits while the race is suspended, and if the racing fates wanted to make Antonelli the youngest winner in F1 history, yesterday would have been the day to make that happen. Turn 1 at Suzuka is not the best place to overtake. Credit: Clive Rose/Getty Images Maybe in Hollywood, but that's not real life; morning rain made the grass damp enough that nothing went up in flames. A recent repave of the track surface not only increased grip but basically eliminated tire degradation, which in turn meant the drivers could race flat out rather than having to manage their tire wear by driving more slowly than the cars are capable. With everyone on basically the same strategy, in cars that are very closely matched in performance and starting lined up in order of that performance, the end result was a foregone conclusion. In fact, there was more overtaking at last year's Monaco Grand Prix.Piastri appeared to have more speed than his McLaren teammate, but Norris was staying further back from Verstappen on purpose. This ruleset was introduced in part to reduce the wake of dirty air given off by an F1 car at speed, but much of that progress has been reversed as teams have evolved their designs to improve their balance and prevent the aerodynamic-induced oscillations known as porpoising.So the top three finished where they started, as did almost everyone else. Verstappen came first, giving his Honda engine partners a home win in the final year of Honda's association with Red Bull. Norris came second, still one point ahead of Verstappen in a championship that still has more than 20 races left to go. And Piastri had to settle for third on his birthday, a stinging lesson in the importance of stringing together a qualifying lap.A three-way fight for the crown? Max Verstappen (L), Oscar Piastri (M), and Lando Norris (R) compare notes after the race. Credit: Bryn Lennon - Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images McLaren might not have been too upset with the finishing order, though. In 2007, it also had two of the fastest drivers on the grid in Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, as well as the fastest car (at times). Either Hamilton or Alonso could have won the world championship that year but took points off each other, allowing Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen to score more than either by year's end. This year, Verstappen and Red Bull appear to be the underdog, but they've also just come off four victorious seasons, and as we saw yesterday, that team makes very few mistakes during the actual races.We won't have long to wait for round four: the sport heads to Bahrain this week. That was the site of its preseason test days, although that event was held in unseasonably cold weather that means much of what the teams learned then may be inapplicable this coming weekend.Jonathan M. GitlinAutomotive EditorJonathan M. GitlinAutomotive Editor Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC. 0 Comments