Looking to recover after a lackluster result in Australia, Red Bull topped the time sheets in Japan ahead of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz as Max Verstappen planted himself ahead of Sergio Perez in an attempt to reestablish their place on top of the grid. The Mercedes duo of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton – also in position to recover after dismal weekend in Melbourne, split the Ferrari pair with the 4th and 5th fastest times ahead of Charles LeClerc.
Leclerc reveals tribute helmet for Bianchi ahead of Japanese Grand Prix
Fernando Alonso led Oscar Piasti, Yuki Tsunoda, and Lando Norris to round out the top 10.
Japanese driver Ayumu Isawa took part in his first practice in formula 1, subbing for Daniel Ricciardo in front of the home fans. Isawa, a current Super Formula regular under the Team Mugen banner, finished his session 16th on the time sheets.
The fairly quiet session was interrupted only by one incident as Logan Sargeant heavily crashed his newly repaired Williams. The American driver ran wide entering turn 7 and lost control as he spun and caught air through the gravel. Critically though, his impact started on the nose of the car before twirling him around, seeming to avoid any significant suspension or gearbox damage in the process. The Williams team, recovering after Alex Albon’s massive shunt in Australia, is unable to bring a new chassis to the Japanese race weekend and will look to repair Sargaent’s car before free practice 2.
Teams return to the circuit for the second free practice session at 15:00 local time Full schedule and FP1 results are below.
FORMULA 1 MSC CRUISES JAPANESE GRAND PRIX 2024 Schedule
| Date | Session | Time (Local Circuit) |
| Apr. 5th | Practice 1 | 11:30 – 12:30 |
| Practice 2 | 15:00 – 16:00 | |
| Apr. 6th | Practice 3 | 11:30 – 12:30 |
| Qualifying | 15:00 – 16:00 | |
| Apr. 7th | Race | 14:00 |
Free Practice 1 Results:
| POS | NO | DRIVER | CAR | TIME | GAP | LAPS |
| 1 | 1 | Max Verstappen | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | 1:30.056 | 17 | |
| 2 | 11 | Sergio Perez | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | 1:30.237 | 0.181s | 17 |
| 3 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | FERRARI | 1:30.269 | 0.213s | 19 |
| 4 | 63 | George Russell | MERCEDES | 1:30.530 | 0.474s | 17 |
| 5 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | MERCEDES | 1:30.543 | 0.487s | 22 |
| 6 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | FERRARI | 1:30.558 | 0.502s | 17 |
| 7 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | 1:30.599 | 0.543s | 19 |
| 8 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 1:31.165 | 1.109s | 22 |
| 9 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB HONDA RBPT | 1:31.230 | 1.174s | 19 |
| 10 | 4 | Lando Norris | MCLAREN MERCEDES | 1:31.240 | 1.184s | 21 |
| 11 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | ALPINE RENAULT | 1:31.935 | 1.879s | 18 |
| 12 | 23 | Alexander Albon | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 1:31.943 | 1.887s | 17 |
| 13 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | HAAS FERRARI | 1:31.958 | 1.902s | 18 |
| 14 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | 1:32.054 | 1.998s | 17 |
| 15 | 18 | Lance Stroll | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | 1:32.055 | 1.999s | 16 |
| 16 | 40 | Ayumu Iwasa | RB HONDA RBPT | 1:32.103 | 2.047s | 22 |
| 17 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | ALPINE RENAULT | 1:32.277 | 2.221s | 22 |
| 18 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | 1:32.638 | 2.582s | 17 |
| 19 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | HAAS FERRARI | 1:32.803 | 2.747s | 20 |
| 20 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | 1:33.204 | 3.148s | 10 |
