Verstappen wins first battle of the day against Norris but reports issues after the start
07:14, 06 Apr 2025
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Kada Sárközi joined GPblog as an editor ahead of the 2023 Formula 1 season. He graduated with a BA in Sports Journalism in the UK and has covered Grands Prix and other F1 events live.
Max Verstappen had a great start to the Japanese Grand Prix, but has already reported an issue over the team radio.
The Start
Off the line, Verstappen managed to cut across Norris immediately and keep the lead of the Japanese Grand Prix, starting from pole position.
The Briton also had a good start, and remained in P2 and ahead of Oscar Piastri starting from the right, worse side of the grid.
However, after the first laps, the defending world champion reported an issue over the team radio. "My upshifts are again really bad," he first said. He then added: "The upshits are worse in the final sector."
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Afterwards, his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase responded to him, saying that it should get better during the upcoming laps.
On Lap 7, Verstappen confirmed that the shifts are "better."
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