Perhaps never before has the Japanese GP disappointed F1 fans like this year. The Suzuka circuit, one of the most appreciated by drivers and often the scene of thrilling races, this time delivered one of the dullest races in recent memory, sparking concern about other tracks on the calendar.
The Grand Prix featured a clean start, with almost all drivers maintaining their starting positions. Over the course of the entire race, only 15 overtakes were completed, while more than half the grid finished in the same position they started.
Among the top ten, despite some closing gaps between Russell and Leclerc and later between Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, only Lewis Hamilton completed an overtake—on Isack Hadjar. The highlights of the race were limited to heated team radio messages from Alex Albon, timid attack attempts between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, and a moment of tension between the latter and Max Verstappen on pit lane exit. Aside from that, it was plain sailing.
The “alarming” data from the Japanese GP suggest a near future for F1 where qualifying will become increasingly decisive over the course of a race weekend. Circuits such as Imola and Qatar—where overtaking is difficult—raise concerns, as do others like Baku, where last year, after being passed, Charles Leclerc was unable to regain his position from Oscar Piastri.
Overtaking is becoming increasingly difficult: here’s why
But why is overtaking becoming more difficult in today’s Formula 1? One explanation comes from Andrea Stella, echoed by others in the paddock.
“We keep adding downforce to the cars, which means the losses [when following a rival] are even greater, so I think dirty air is a problem,” Andrea Stella explained.
“We saw it in China as well with Lewis Hamilton—when he was leading the Sprint, he could do practically anything he wanted, even with a damaged tyre. So being in front is a significant advantage.”
“Even though this generation of cars was designed to improve the ability to follow closely, they’ve once again become so aerodynamically dependent that as soon as you get into the slipstream of the car in front, you lose performance,” the Italian added.
Andrea Stella’s statements were backed up by several drivers. “It was flat-out from start to finish, but the pace was too similar to do anything,” said Lando Norris. Oscar Piastri added: “We came close to overtaking a couple of times, but track position is important here. I think yesterday (in qualifying) was when the race was actually won.”
Carlos Sainz also made strong comments: “The midfield is very tight, and on a track where you have to be 0.7 to 0.8 seconds faster to overtake, it was impossible to expect a race where you could make up ground,” he said. “This track has, in a way, become similar to Monaco in terms of how difficult overtaking is.” – the former Ferrari driver concluded.
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