Advertisement League of Ireland Horse Racing TV Listings GAA Fixtures The Video Review Sport meets news, current affairs, society & pop culture Rugby Weekly Extra Dive into all the news and analysis 3 times a week The Football Family Weekly insights from the week’s big talking points Advertisement More Stories Max Verstappen was on form in Japan.Shuji Kajiyama/AP FreeFormula One Verstappen leaves McLarens behind to claim Japanese Grand Prix pole position McLaren had set the pace by topping all three practice sessions this weekend. 10.31am, 5 Apr 2025 Share options MAX VERSTAPPEN PRODUCED an incredible lap to stun McLaren pair Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri and claim a shock pole position for the Japanese Grand Prix. McLaren have won both races so far this season – one each for Norris and Piastri – and had set the pace by topping all three practice sessions this weekend. Verstappen’s Red Bull has been off the pace throughout practice, with the four-time world champion saying he was lacking confidence in his car ahead of qualifying. But the Dutchman showed his quality when it mattered to beat Norris by just 0.012 seconds. Verstappen’s race engineer told his driver over the radio that the lap was “insane”. “Every session we just kept on making little improvements, I think that is where we made the difference and the last lap was just flat out,” Verstappen said. Advertisement “We will look to tomorrow and do our best.” Norris added: “I’m happy, congrats to Max he did a good job. You’ve got to credit something when it’s a lap that good that he must have done. “It’s going to be an exciting race.” Piastri will line up from third on his birthday on Sunday, ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. George Russell, who has finished third in the first two races of the season, had appeared to be the nearest challenger to the McLarens at Suzuka but could only manage fifth in his Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton struggled to find pace for Ferrari and will start Sunday’s race from eighth. British driver Oliver Bearman enjoyed a superb session, putting his Haas into Q3 for the first time this season and qualified 10th. Home favourite Yuki Tsunoda suffered a disappointing Q2 exit on his Red Bull debut, having replaced Liam Lawson who was ditched after just two races and returned to Racing Bulls. Tsunoda qualified 15th and one place behind Lawson – the New Zealander making it out of Q1 for the first time this campaign. Qualifying was disrupted by grass fires at the side of the track, an issue which has plagued the action throughout the weekend. Friday’s second practice and Saturday morning’s session were each red-flagged twice when dry grass caught fire. The FIA had taken preventative measures heading into Saturday’s action and again doused the grass ahead of qualifying, with concern that the weekend’s first competitive racing could be affected. Another fire, primarily caused by sparks thrown up by the skid blocks under the cars, began with eight minutes of Q2 remaining as the session was halted for more water to be put on the affected area. Press Association Viewcomments Send Tip or Correction Embed this post To embed this post, copy the code below on your site Email “Verstappen leaves McLarens behind to claim Japanese Grand Prix pole position”. Recipient's Email Feedback on “Verstappen leaves McLarens behind to claim Japanese Grand Prix pole position”. Your Feedback Your Email (optional) Report a Comment Please select the reason for reporting this comment. Please give full details of the problem with the comment... This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. 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