The event was held at the Suzuka International Racing Course in Suzuka for the 34th time in the circuit's history, across the weekend of 5–7 April. The Grand Prix was the fourth round of the 2024 Formula One World Championship and the 49th running of the Japanese Grand Prix.[3] The edition was the first time that the event was held as an early-season round, a departure from its traditional schedule between September and November.[4] The move was part of Formula One's regionalisation efforts, which put the Japanese Grand Prix between the Australian and Chinese Grands Prix.[5]
The drivers and teams were the same as the season entry list with no additional stand-in drivers for the race.[7]Ayumu Iwasa made his Formula One practice debut for RB, driving in place of Daniel Ricciardo in the first free practice session.[8]
Tyre supplier Pirelli brought the C1, C2, and C3 tyre compounds (the three hardest in their range) designated hard, medium, and soft, respectively, for teams to use at the event.[9]
Practice
Three free practice sessions were held for the event. The first free practice session was held on 5 April 2024, at 11:30 local time (UTC+9), and was topped by Red Bull driver Max Verstappen ahead of his teammate Sergio Pérez and Carlos Sainz Jr. of Ferrari.[10] The session was red-flagged after Williams' Logan Sargeant lost control of his car and hit the wall, breaking his front wing. The second free practice session was held on the same day, at 15:00 local time, and was topped by Mclaren's Oscar Piastri ahead of Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes and Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.[10] The damp conditions prevented most drivers from completing a run, and only five set competitive lap times.[11] The third free practice session was held on 6 April 2024, at 11:30 local time, and was topped by Verstappen ahead of his teammate Pérez and George Russell of Mercedes.[12][13]
The race was held on 7 April 2024, at 14:00 local time (UTC+9), and was run for 53 laps.[12]
Race report
Polesitter Max Verstappen, driving for Red Bull, led the race into the first corner before a crash involving Daniel Ricciardo and Alexander Albon neutralised the race for over twenty minutes while the tyre barriers had to be repaired.[16] Following the red flag period, the race restarted with a standing start on lap three. On lap 12, Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu retired due to a gearbox problem, the third retirement of the race. Verstappen remained unchallenged, eventually making his pit stop on lap 16. This handed the lead of the race to Ferrari's Charles Leclerc, but Verstappen, who had a significant tyre advantage, closed the gap to Leclerc and by lap 20 retook the lead.[16] By that point, it became clear[original research?] that Leclerc was performing a one-stop strategy on his medium tyres, and swapped to hards by the end of lap 26. Leclerc's one-stop strategy would prove effective, while the Mercedes drivers of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who had swapped to hards during the red-flag period, were struggling with tyre degradation.[16] A brief yellow flag period was observed on lap 42, after Logan Sargeant in the sole remaining Williams drove into the gravel at turn 9, but was able to reverse back on track and continue.[17] As the race entered its final laps, Carlos Sainz Jr. overtook Leclerc for the last spot on the podium behind Verstappen's teammate Sergio Pérez.[16] Russell attempted to overtake Oscar Piastri at turn 16 in the closing laps; Piastri temporarily maintained his position, but on the final lap Russell successfully overtook Piastri to finish in seventh.[17]Yuki Tsunoda of RB scored one point in tenth, the first Japanese Formula One driver to score a point at their home race since Kamui Kobayashi's podium at the 2012 Japanese Grand Prix.[18]
