Analysis

Five quick takeaways from F1's 2026 Japanese Grand Prix

Kimi Antonelli wins again and moves into the championship lead

Antonelli confirms F1 title ambitions - Jose Carlos de Celis

George Russell seemed destined to win the championship with relative ease this year following Mercedes’ strong start under the new 2026 F1 rules. But suddenly, his team-mate Kimi Antonelli has earned the right to be considered, at the very least, a contender for the title.

The Italian, who already took a record pole in China and secured his first victory on a difficult Sunday for Russell, did it again in Japan with his second consecutive pole and another win. Yes, he benefited from the safety car that handed him the lead — but what if that’s what you call “champion’s luck”?

A poor start from pole cost him several positions, but after inheriting the lead behind the safety car, he didn’t put a foot wrong until the chequered flag.

After a rookie season in 2025 that brought the expected ups and downs, we are now starting to see a more mature Antonelli.

Welcome back, McLaren, we’ve been waiting for you - Federico Faturos

The world champions have finally arrived!

McLaren had been the big absentee in Formula 1’s new era. Oscar Piastri was unable to start his home race after crashing on the way to the grid, and Norris could only manage fifth in Melbourne. Then things went from bad to worse in China, where neither driver could take the start due to separate electrical issues.

It took some time, but both McLarens started the race in Suzuka and the team was in the fight, especially with Piastri, who made a great getaway from third on the grid and led the pack until his pit stop on lap 18.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Photo by: Simon Galloway / LAT Images via Getty Images

While the safety car following Oliver Bearman’s heavy crash worked in his favour, Piastri’s second place was a well-deserved reward for a strong race from both the Australian and the team.

With a month to go until the next round in Miami, it remains to be seen whether this is truly the starting point for McLaren’s season or just an isolated result.

Suzuka puts pros and cons of F1 2026 regulations - Fil Cleeren

The third grand prix of the season has largely followed the blueprint of the previous weekends in Melbourne and Shanghai. In stark contrast with last year's parade, Suzuka provided an entertaining afternoon with lots of passing and repassing. Some of that was trivial battery related overtaking, but not all of it.

But Bearman's scary crash also further confirmed existing safety concerns around closing speeds are still valid, and Saturday's fierce driver pushback against the lack of flat-out driving in qualifying also reinforced the need for regulations tweaks before the next race in Miami. Suzuka should be a wake-up call for F1 on several fronts, with crunch talks to follow in two weeks.

Red Bull now a midfield team in F1 - Oleg Karpov

Apparently, Melbourne wasn’t a true reflection. What looked like a decent and promising start for Red Bull with its own power unit now appears to have been an outlier. The Milton Keynes outfit failed to confirm that form in China – and now for a second weekend in a row in Japan.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Esteban Ocon, Haas F1 Team

Photo by: Rudy Carezzevoli / Getty Images

McLaren has since recovered – and even Alpine looks stronger at times. It suggests the season is going to be far more challenging than it initially appeared, which is certainly not helping Max Verstappen feel any better about Formula 1 as a whole.

“We can see that Melbourne was better,” he told reporters in Suzuka on Saturday. “And then somehow some things happened with the car without even having touched it. That is always a big problem.”

Verstappen fighting with Pierre Gasly during the race, and Isack Hadjar finishing behind Liam Lawson, Esteban Ocon and Nico Hulkenberg, clearly shows Red Bull’s current place in F1 – it’s in the midfield.

Race starts are a chink in the Mercedes armour - Ed Hardy

Mercedes is the dominant team in Formula 1 2026. The Silver Arrows lead the championship having won every race from pole and it is seemingly a straight-up fight between Russell and Antonelli for the drivers’ title.

The superiority of the W17 is down to various factors from the chassis to its power unit and efficient energy deployment, though Suzuka proved that the car isn’t perfect. That’s because for the third grand prix in a row, Mercedes has lost the lead at race start with either the Ferrari drivers or Piastri being the ones to benefit.

This comes after changes to the race start procedure, because the 2026 cars have removed the MGU-H meaning drivers must rev their engines high for at least 10 seconds to spool up the turbo for a fast getaway. But for whatever reason, usually down to lack of battery power, Mercedes has failed to do that for a grand prix this year with the China sprint being the only time it’s kept the lead at race start.

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, Oscar Piastri, McLaren

Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images

Of course the W17 being superior everywhere else has helped Russell and Antonelli fight back to the front as the race has progressed, but that isn’t sustainable as teams behind will inevitably close in. So if Mercedes is to remain the outright dominant outfit, it’ll need to get a grip of these race starts as soon as possible…