Japanese points Talking GP: Lando Norris vs Oscar Piastri, Red Bull’s Unsons They Exchanges, Ferrari Early Pressure | F1 News

After a large winter billing, the new Formula 1 season certainly did not provide the end of the early drama and surprise outside the track after the opening two rounds of the campaign.

With the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuce Next Up Live On Sky Sports F1 This weekend we will dive into some of the largest topics heading to the third round …

Norris vs piastri is set to present various McLaren Challenge

Two Grands Prix, two wins.

Any further confirmation needed after pre -season testing that McLaren has the fastest car and is a team that defeated at least at the beginning of the new season has arrived properly over the opening fourteen days F1 2025, but they can try to play it too much.

The ruling masters of designers opened the season with their backs for the first time since 2003 and almost certainly would have a few two -wheelers, but for rotation on dry tires in Melbourne rain, which proved so expensive for Oscar Piastri.

But Piastri immediately and impressively intervened a week later in Shanghai to overcome Lando Norris during Sprint Weekend and reduce the time deficit for his teammate by 13 points to 10.

Max Verstappen and George Russell are currently among the McLaren couple in the ranking of drivers, but on the first evidence they are Norris and Piastri, who will certainly be a long title in the season.

Norris and Piastriho victory for a piece led to early questions about how they and the McLaren team would handle a couple who set out on the crown of drivers deep into the campaign, as pressure and bets increase.

Norris said they were “nervous, but enthusiasm” after the race, while the team director Andrea Stella said, while “trying to be ready for a long time”, they would still inevitably adapt to situations when they evolved.

“Like all things in Formula 1, it would be very arrogant to say” Oh, now we are ready “or” We were ready “,” Stella said.

“You will learn, because the scenarios are very complex, they will never manifest in the same way, so you just have to continue learning and, as well as performance, reliability, operations, you also do the way you manage the team.”

Among the couple in Suzuka is probably another battle-head battle, which was already in the previous two seasons, when Red Bull remained Pacesetters, McLaren. We will start to learn a little more about the triple head of the Japanese-Bahrain-Saudi Arabia, how many other candidates will maintain the pace with them.

Many unanswered questions with Red Bull exchange

While McLaren may consider the prospect of managing two drivers with a title for a luxury problem to get along the road, Red Bull’s opponents are currently more urgent and more prominent.

The first focuses on improving the pace and adherence to their RB21 car; The second in an attempt to turn the wealth of the driver in their swivel second seat.

Liam Lawson lasted only two problem weekends by Liam Lawson for their trust in 2024 in New Zealand, who was a driver in his stable to proceed to the challenge, with Yuki Tsunoda due to promotion – including the Japanese driver himself.

The Red Bull U -Turn driver was as sudden as shocking, and so hearing from all key players in the heart of this story – Tsunod, Lawson and team chief Christian Horner – for the first time in person through the Suzuka weekend will be inevitably fascinating.

Just as Verstappen will hear it all.

If his or at least his official account, “as” a critical post on Instagram The change is a reliable indicator, then a four -time champion is probably not particularly impressed by what has developed.

But with which aspect of the decision could be dissatisfied? The simple fact that the Lawson didn’t get more time? The fact that the latest change of teammate is coming creates new instability when they should prefer to get a better car for both drivers?

And what, if something, does it mean for his future in the team?

All interesting questions we should get key answers to this week …

Ferrari needs a big weekend

Their rivals are still talking to them, but Ferrari’s beginning of the season definitely underwent compared to pre -season expectations. He arrives at Suzuka, who already needs a strong weekend to start his title challenge.

For two very different reasons, Ferrari was on the Wednesday of two two news actions of the second round – the first victory of Lewis Hamilton in Red on Saturday’s sprint and then a double disqualification from the Sunday Grand Prix, eliminated by Brit and Charles Leclerc from the final classification.

Ferrari’s embarrassment when they saw their two cars excluded for various technical violations – for the first time in the 75 -year history of the World Championship that the famous Scuderia suffered a double DSQ – was the other, the other was that the loss of the fifth and sixth place was already disappointed.

Hamilton was the only driver of the first six to twice stopping for tires, and while Leclerc was better off for the pace as soon as his teammate suggested to replace the positions, the superior speed of Monegasque was somewhat confusing because he carried a damaged front wing.

In any case, Verstappen was finally redesigned to the fourth reworking Leclerc and finished 23 seconds behind the winner of the Piastri race before disqualification that his car was 1 kg of underweight.

The double exclusion stripped off Ferrari with 18 points and pushed them to the reviving Williams to the fifth place in the ranking and created a large 61 point deficit for the dominant McLaren championship.

Soon after the race before his cars were known to have failed after the check races, the head of the team Fred Vasseur stressed that there was no time for panic so soon in the campaign.

Vasseur pointed out that the Leclerc race showed the promise that the Chinese weekend up and down showed that all the big teams suffered from the level of inconsistency with tires, and just had to figure out how to consistently extract the best of the SF-25.

“I think the gap with McLaren is a gap that Red Bull and I had two two in the first two races,” Vasseur said.

“I think that if I return at a press conference last year, I had the question:” Do you think they (Red Bull) will be a champion in June? “

“That’s why we have to take it with a pinch of salt. I’m sure they’re in good shape, they’re doing well. The pace is strong, it’s clear and I think they’re one step ahead, but it’s not the end of the championship.”

Everything true, but Ferrari certainly can’t afford much more difficult weekends at any time if they don’t lose contact with McLaren.

SUZUKA: Timeless Challenge of Drivers

The race in the Japanese iconic circle of eight -eight can now be located at the opposite end of the calendar, where it became associated with some of the most famous title referees, but as F1 drivers clarify this week, at any time of year is a good time.

F1 is now competing in Japan during the picturesque month of Cherry Blossom or Sakura in the ground, which certainly adds another attraction to his annual visit.

One thing that has barely changed since the sport first visited Suzuku in 1987 is its 3.6 miles, the layout of 18 corners itself.

If the aspects of another of the popular drivers’ route – SPA -Francorchamps – have become a minor challenge in recent years due to the development of modern F1 cars, Suzuka remains due to the presence of Ses, tons, spoons and 130r to name only four fast sections of the Japanese most suitable racing road.

The narrow street track lined with a monaco barrier can be widely considered to be the final “wheel” F1 to follow the drivers when working in low fuel qualifications, but the 360 ​​-degree camera view at the top of this page from Verstappen’s pole efforts last year is strong evidence that Suuka is not far behind.

It is worth getting up a little early to watch the qualifications at 7 am on Saturday Sky Sports F1And then, as you will be in the alarm clocking groove, full 53-round Grand Prix also on Sunday at 6 o’clock!

Thursday 3rd April

• 5:00: Driver’s press conference

Friday 4th April

• 3AM: Japanese practical GP one (session starts at 3.30 pm)*
• 5.30: 00: Team directors press conference
• 6.45: 00: Japanese practice GP Two (session starts at 7 o’clock)*
• 8.15: 00: Show F1*

Saturday 5th April

• 3.15: 00: Japanese practice GP three (session starts at 3.30 pm)*
• 6:00: Japanese qualification of Japanese GP*
• 7:00: Qualification of Japanese GP*
• 9:00: Ted’s qualifying notebook*

Sunday 6th April

• 4.30: Setup of Japanese GP: Sunday Grand Prix*
• 6:00: Japanese Grand Prix*
• 8:00: Japanese GP reaction: chessboard*
• 9:00: Ted’s notebook*

*Live also at the main Sky Sports event

Formula 1 heads to the iconic SUZUKA for the Japanese Grand Prix on 4.-6. April, lives on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with now – no contract whenever cancel