Oscar Piastri finished Friday as the fastest driver but still expects one team will give McLaren a fiercer fight for pole position at the 2025 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix.
Multiple stoppages restricted F1 teams to very limited running during FP2 at Suzuka. Drivers who completed the full 60-minute session would only attempt between nine and 14 laps of the Honda-owned circuit, compared to the average of 24.85 laps during FP1 in the morning.
McLaren racers Piastri and Lando Norris recorded 13 and 12 laps as they set the pace in FP2 at the Japanese GP. The 23-year-old beat his 25-year-old teammate by only 0.049 seconds, as Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar 0.404s back took advantage of the stoppages to get P3.
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri fears Mercedes’ George Russell in the fight for pole position at the Japanese GP
Piastri did not enjoy a flawless start at Suzuka, as the Australian only achieved the 15th-best lap in FP1 with a 1.159s deficit to Norris atop the timesheets. Mercedes driver George Russell instead led the fight in second place with a 0.163s deficit that grew to 0.453s in FP2 for P6.
While Russell did not overcome the stoppages caused by Jack Doohan crashing at 185mph in FP2 at Suzuka, Fernando Alonso beaching his Aston Martin in the gravel and the trackside grass catching fire twice, Piastri believes Mercedes will still fight for pole at the Japanese GP.
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| Position | Constructors’ Standings | Points |
| 1 |
McLaren Racing |
78 |
| 2 |
Mercedes-AMG Petronas |
57 |
| 3 |
Red Bull Racing |
36 |
| 4 |
Williams F1 Team |
17 |
| 5 |
Scuderia Ferrari |
17 |
| 6 |
Haas F1 Team |
14 |
The Silver Arrows’ speed around Suzuka at the hands of Russell impressed Piastri, who feels McLaren also faced ‘several problems’ despite setting the pace at the Japanese GP owing to the wind. But while he expects a fight in qualifying, McLaren’s race pace encourages Piastri.
“It was a difficult day,” Piastri said, via quotes by Gazzetta dello Sport. “The strong wind created several problems for us – especially in FP2. Overall, the feeling is good and I felt comfortable in the car.
“It’s difficult to say if we are the fastest. Mercedes seemed very strong. But in terms of race pace, I think we are at a good point.”
Oscar Piastri has an edge over Lando Norris after practice at the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix
Russell highlighted Mercedes’ possible single-lap pace in practice at the Japanese GP to put Piastri and McLaren on notice before qualifying. Rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli could only set the ninth-best (0.735s off Norris) and 16th-fastest (1.619s from Piastri) times in FP1 and FP2.
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The Italian struggling compared to his teammate is not surprising as the 18-year-old had not raced at Suzuka prior to the Japanese GP. He is also adapting to one of the most challenging tracks on the F1 calendar and Antonelli found Suzuka’s Esses ‘scary’ on Mercedes’ simulator.
So, Mercedes will now hope Russell can convert his promising early pace to battle McLaren’s Piastri and Norris for pole on Saturday. But the advantage in the race might swing in Piastri’s favour after Russell and Norris both suffered with front tyre graining amid their longer runs.
Norris was among the first drivers to report graining on his tyres amid a high-fuel run in FP1 on Friday. Yet his race engineer Will Joseph was quick to tell the McLaren driver that Russell had started to show signs of graining on the Mercedes racer’s tyres after four high-fuel laps.
