For fans, the early arrival of the Suzuka GP in the calendar year is unusual. Typically, F1 visits the Japanese circuit in autumn. However, Liberty Media and the FIA have moved Honda’s home race to the beginning of the calendar for geographical reasons. The Chinese GP (round 5 of the season) is relatively close. Formula 1 also hopes to avoid the rain that often impacts race weekends in Suzuka.
For Pirelli, their choice of tyre compounds has not changed. They have again brought the hardest compounds available, owing to Suzuka’s high-degradation nature. Initial weather analysis suggests it could rain throughout the weekend – and especially on Sunday. Maximum temperatures should be at just 17°C over the three days of action.
JAPANESE GP: IS A ONE OR TWO-STOP MORE VIABLE?
The starting pressures for the Japanese GP are the same as those for 2023. Last year, almost everyone ran three sets of tyres during the Sunday race. Those who didn’t follow the standard strategy suffered terribly from degradation.
George Russell finished the race in seventh place after trying to resist the attacks by Hamilton and Sainz, who had a similar pace but on a two-stop strategy.
According to Pirelli, the lower temperatures brought by the Japanese spring, with averages of 8 to 13°C in this period, could make a one-stop strategy possible. On the other hand, a wet race would make the strategy unknown due to the softness of the intermediate and full wet compounds. In 2022, many drivers suffered from significant degradation during the wet conditions. These circumstances could contribute to a two or even three-stop race.
Suzuka puts the tyres to the test – both in terms of wear and the lateral forces they are subject to. Demanding curves include turn 1, the entire ‘Snake’ section, the two Degners, and especially the Spoon curve in the second sector. These will all put the aerodynamic stability of the cars to the test.
Nobody could challenge Red Bull in these high-speed corners last year. The thermal degradation tyres will suffer on Sunday is also an important factor to consider. Max Verstappen will fancy his chances of returning to the top step.
POST-GP JAPAN TESTS, RACING BULLS AND SAUBER WILL TEST THE 2025 COMPOUNDS
As we anticipated last week, there will be two days of testing after the Grand Prix – on April 9th and 10th. Pirelli will carry out these tests with Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber and Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team.
They will work to develop constructions and compounds for next season. The main objective ahead of 2025 is to reduce overheating, which is one of the delicate aspects of the current range available for the current season. Changes to the aerodynamic regulations between the second half of 2022 and the beginning of 2023 have increased the dirty air effect on these cars.
Overheating when following another car is significant also. Pirelli is working on a completely revised structure, which should debut at the beginning of 2025, barring any unforeseen delays.
