George Russell secured a front-row start for the F1 Japanese GP despite a difficult and unusual qualifying session, as Mercedes continued to show strong pace at Suzuka.
While teammate Kimi Antonelli claimed pole position, Russell admitted that his own session felt far from straightforward, with balance issues emerging at the start of qualifying.
“The car just did not feel the same”
During the post-qualifying press conference, Russell revealed that a late set-up change disrupted the balance he had enjoyed throughout practice, leaving him struggling in the opening phase of the F1 Japanese GP qualifying session.
“It was really odd, to be honest. We made a set-up adjustment just going into qualifying and the car just did not feel the same as it has been the whole weekend. You saw my first laps in Q1, I was down in P7, P8, and we had to make a massive adjustment during qualifying with the front wing to adapt.”
The unexpected change forced Mercedes to react quickly mid-session, and Russell admitted the team is still investigating what caused the issue.
“The team have already had a look. We don’t know whether something incorrect was done or what happened, but I’m kind of glad again to be in this position because after Q1, I was like, ‘I’m not sure where we’ll end up’.”
Rear-End instability through the Esses
Russell pinpointed the main issue as a rear-end imbalance, which particularly affected him through Suzuka’s high-speed Esses section.
“We made a mechanical issue to the car on the rear end and it was just mainly through the Esses. I couldn’t attack any of the corners. The rear was trying to step out on me throughout.”
The lack of stability prevented him from pushing with confidence, especially in one of the most technical parts of the circuit.
“I’m sure we’ll try and see what happened. There’s not really anything we can do now, but as I said, it’s a good place to start for tomorrow and it’s going to be a long race.”
Not the Ideal Preparation for Race Day
Despite securing a strong grid position, Russell acknowledged that the session did not unfold as planned and leaves some uncertainty heading into the race.
“Yeah, it’s not ideal. I think, as I said, I’ve felt really comfortable with the car this whole weekend and in qualifying something didn’t quite feel right.”
He hopes the team can identify the root cause overnight or that he can adapt his driving to compensate.
“So, let’s see tonight, maybe we’ll get some answers, maybe I can adjust my driving style to compensate, but definitely not the session we would have wanted. Two weeks in a row qualifying has been a bit tricky.”
Rivals closing the gap
Mercedes showed dominant pace in final practice, but Russell admitted he was surprised by how close Ferrari and McLaren came in qualifying.
“Yeah, to be honest, qualifying was very close between the Ferraris and McLaren throughout, so that was probably a bit of a surprise to us.”
Although Mercedes still locked out the front row, the margins were tighter than expected.
“We both had a very strong FP3 session, we thought we had a bit of a margin to the competitors. Obviously, we’re still P1 and P2, so that’s great, but clearly the others are closing in.”
Track evolution playing a role
Russell also highlighted how Suzuka’s resurfacing has changed the balance of grip across the lap, particularly in the second sector.
“I think a lot. When we resurfaced the first half of the track last year, it was like driving on two completely different circuits. This year obviously the first sector has degraded a little bit, but the second half of the lap has the grip that the first half had last year.”
The increased grip has contributed to competitive lap times and added another variable for drivers to manage.
“So, I think that also explains a little bit of why we’re close to last year’s times, because I think we’ve gained a lot of grip in the second half of the lap. But yeah, it’s good fun when you’ve got more grip.”
Praise for His engineer
Russell also took the opportunity to praise his race engineer, Katsuhide Kuwahara, whose home race this weekend adds extra significance.
“Yeah, I mean, Katsu is one of the most talented engineers we have in the whole team and definitely one of the most hard-working individuals also in the team. I feel very fortunate to have him as one of my engineers.”
He reflected on a shared success from the previous season.
“He stood on the podium with me in Canada last year, which was a very proud moment for everybody. So obviously, great for him to have his own race in Japan and great for him to be part of the team.”
Despite the setbacks during the F1 Japanese GP qualifying session, Russell remains well-placed on the front row for Sunday’s race. With Mercedes showing strong pace and rivals closing in, the race at Suzuka promises to be closely contested.
