F1 LIVE | Piastri and Russell battle for the lead after slow Mercedes start: follow the Japanese GP here!

The young Italian secured his second consecutive pole position, following on from Shanghai two weeks ago, delivering a dominant qualifying performance that also saw him comfortably outperform his teammate.

George Russell ended up three tenths adrift, never quite able to match his teammate’s pace at any point across the weekend. Third place went to Oscar Piastri, with the MCL40 showing clear signs of progress after struggling in the opening two rounds.

Charles Leclerc will line up on the second row, a small mistake on his final lap likely costing him a shot at third, with reigning world champion Lando Norris alongside him.

Lewis Hamilton will head up the third row after a tricky qualifying session, finishing not only behind his teammate but also Norris. It was a disastrous outing, meanwhile, for Max Verstappen, who was knocked out in Q2 in P11, beaten by Arvid Lindblad, with Isack Hadjar also qualifying ahead of him.

The Italian set a 1:28.778 to secure pole, opening up a gap of nearly three tenths over George Russell, who was unable to mount a serious challenge.

After qualifying, the young driver downplayed the margin, pointing to how easily time can be gained or lost under the current regulations, suggesting the gap did not fully reflect the underlying competitiveness. He also highlighted Russell’s pace throughout the weekend, noting the race would provide a clearer picture of where they truly stand.

Russell, meanwhile, turned his attention to the teams behind, admitting that the closeness of Ferrari and McLaren came as a slight surprise. Despite a strong showing in final practice and expectations of a more comfortable margin, he acknowledged that the chasing pack has closed in, even if the team still locked out the front row.