Antonelli beats Russell to pole, as Verstappen exits Q2 in Japan: Follow Qualifying reaction here!

The Japanese GP is the final race before F1’s 'in-season break'. The five-week hiatus came about following the cancellation of the race in Bahrain and Jeddah due to the ongoing Middle East tensions.

Friday's proceedings at the Japanese Grand Prix showed that Mercedes may have some competition from McLaren during qualifying on Saturday.

George Russell led the way in FP1 ahead of Kimi Antonelli and Lando Norris, but it was Oscar Piastri who flipped the script and finished FP2 in P1, proving that the British team have some fight about them at Suzuka.

However, despite some rejuvenation from McLaren after a double-DNF at the Chinese Grand Prix, Mercedes' race pace still looks to be the dominating factor compared to the rest of the grid.

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