Max Verstappen has claimed pole position for tomorrow’s Japanese Grand Prix but must face a steward’s investigation after narrowly managing to avoid a collision with Lando Norris during qualifying.
The Dutchman, who can claim the championship on Sunday, posted the quickest time after fending off the duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz from Ferrari. He finished just 0.010s clear of Leclerc, denying his rival what would have been his 10th pole finish of the season.
The main talking point from the qualifying stage occurred in the early stages of Q3, after Verstappen swerved left on a slow lap and almost crashed into Norris who had to steer onto the grass.
“There’s no rule on doing what you can do but doing what he did, is something you cannot do,” Norris said when speaking to Sky Sports after the qualifying session.
“People always overtake before the last corner – as much as everyone always agrees to it.
“Everyone always does it. It doesn’t matter, he probably would’ve done the same in my situation, but I wouldn’t have swerved at him if I was in his situation.”
Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez rounded out the top four, while it was a good day for Alpine with Esteban Ocon and Fernando Alonso climbing into the top eight.
Full classification from that memorable qualifying session!#JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/aKzkAGRbbZ
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 8, 2022
MORE: How can Max Verstappen be crowned F1 world champion at the Japanese Grand Prix?
Japanese Grand Prix 2022 provisional starting grid
| POSITION | DRIVER |
| 1 | Max Verstappen |
| 2 | Charles Leclerc |
| 3 | Carlos Sainz |
| 4 | Sergio Perez |
| 5 | Esteban Ocon |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton |
| 7 | Fernando Alonso |
| 8 | George Russell |
| 9 | Sebastian Vettel |
| 10 | Lando Norris |
| 11 | Daniel Ricciardo |
| 12 | Valtteri Bottas |
| 13 | Yuki Tsunoda |
| 14 | Guanyu Zhou |
| 15 | Mick Schumacher |
| 16 | Alexander Albon |
| 17 | Pierre Gasly |
| 18 | Kevin Magnussen |
| 19 | Lance Stroll |
| 20 | Nicholas Latifi |
F1 Japanese Grand Prix qualifying updates, highlights
END OF Q3: Verstappen edges out Leclerc to claim pole position! However, he faces an investigation after the incident involving Norris.
2 mins left of Q3:
1. Max Verstappen – 1:29.304
2. Charles Leclerc +0.253s
3. Carlos Sainz +0.398s
4. Sergio Perez +0.69s
5 mins left of Q3: Norris and Verstappen nearly collide as the Dutchman slightly loses control around a corner and Norris steers onto the grass.
That was close! 🙈
Lando Norris just avoids Max Verstappen, who gets a huge kick of oversteer coming into the final chicane
No contact is made and they both continue#JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/L0sztfX65N
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 8, 2022
FIA stewards announce the incident on turn 15 will be investigated after the session.
START OF Q3: “I’m ecstatic with this one,” Vettel says as he books his slot in the top-ten shootout. “This track is just so much better than all the other ones.”
END OF Q2: Daniel Ricciardo narrowly misses out after looking the goods during the early stages, but Vettel just pips him.
Meanwhile, Sergio Perez posts the quickest lap time so far as he gets into the 1.29s.
Q2 is over.
Lando makes it through, but unfortunately Daniel misses out on reaching Q3 by the narrowest of margins in P11.#JapaneseGP 🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/gTevxvj2FX
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) October 8, 2022
Eliminated from Q2:
11. Daniel Ricciardo
12. Valtteri Bottas
13. Yuki Tsunoda
14. Zhou Guanyu
15. Mick Schumacher
2 mins left of Q2: Verstappen, Sainz and Leclerc check into the pits, while every other driver is out trying to chase their times.
5 mins left of Q2: Verstappen answers the challenge set by the Ferrari pair and sets the quickest time once again with a 1:30.346s.
Hamilton and Alonso find themselves in the middle of the pack, while Vettel finds himself in the danger zone.
START OF Q2: Carlos Sainz clocks the quickest lap so far to put himself into pole position for now.
“Could be a slower track,” he informs his team over the radio as the sun begins to come out.
And just like that, Q2 is go!#JapaneseGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/wVxarsiYFb
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 8, 2022
END OF Q1: Both of the Williams’ cars are eliminated, as Sebastian Vettel barely manages to survive the first cut. He finishes 0.055secs ahead of Albon.
Eliminated from Q1:
Alexander Albon
Pierre Gasly
Kevin Magnussen
Lance Stroll
Nicholas Latifi
5 mins left of Q1: Alex Albon has a lap time deleted after exceeding track limits, which puts him into the bottom four.
Pierre Gasly has problems too after issues with his car. “Problem with the brakes!” he shouts over the team radio.
At the other end of the leaderboard, Verstappen posts the quickest time with 1:30:224s.
10 mins left of Q1: Latifi wastes no time and is first out on the track, utilising soft tyres. The AlphaTauri drivers follow closely behind him.
Elsewhere, Leclerc remained in the pits for a while as his team worked on his Ferrari.
START OF Q1: “We’ve seen the drivers push hard, but I don’t think they’ve got the best out of the cars yet,” Jensen Button says on the coverage.
“They’ll be tweaking their cars. They wouldn’t have had time during the session, they’d have had to do their high fuel runs and low fuel runs. Now, we’re in for a treat.”
Qualifying day 🇯🇵🏁#VB77 #F1 #JapaneseGP pic.twitter.com/oMrpnVpoHh
— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) October 8, 2022
15 mins to go: Yesterday’s challenging conditions in the rain have been replaced by an overcast afternoon. However, the practice time of the drivers has been significantly impacted by the adverse weather.
With only a limited amount of experience on the dry circuit so far this weekend, qualifying should be interesting.
Saturday traffic troubles for George Russell 🫣
Catch up on all the best bits from FP3 👇#JapaneseGP #F1
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 8, 2022
30 mins to go: After struggling in the wet conditions for the first two sessions, Verstappen enjoyed the dry track at the famous circuit during Saturday’s final practice.
Lewis Hamilton spoke about his love for the track and returning to Japan after three years away due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s always special when you do your first lap out; you think of all the legends,” Hamilton said.
“It’s cool to see the fans here, and the track is just really cool to drive.”
1 hour to go: Verstappen set the standard in the final practice session and is favourite to take pole position for Sunday’s race.
However, Charles Leclerc is chasing his 10th pole of the season, with the Ferrari driver posing as a big threat.
The veteran, Fernando Alonso, finished in fourth during the third practice session and will be attempting to spring a shock, while Lewis Hamilton and his Mercedes struggled to make an impression.
1 hour 15 mins to go: F1 returns to Japan for the first time in three years!
Verstappen led the third and final practice session with the quickest lap time of 1:30.671 seconds.
Fastest in FP3 ⏱ Max tops Final Practice with Checo in P5 🏁 #JapaneseGP 🇯🇵 pic.twitter.com/M61x2888BM
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 8, 2022
Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc trailed behind him, with Sainz 0.294s off the top spot on the time sheets.
Stay tuned as we bring you all the latest news from today’s qualifying.
What must Max Verstappen do to be crowned F1 world champion this weekend?
There are several ways in which Red Bull’s Verstappen could claim his second successive world championship victory at the Japanese Grand Prix this weekend.
The most simple would be if he won the race and took the extra point for fastest lap along the way. That would see the Dutchman crowned world champion irregardless of where his title rivals finish.
Verstappen could also be crowned champion if he finishes first, doesn’t record the fastest lap but Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finishes lower than P2.
Equally, if either Leclerc or teammate Sergio Perez finish ahead of him, Verstappen cannot be crowned champion in Japan.
The other complicated permutations can be viewed here.
What channel is the F1 race on?
- Race: Japanese Grand Prix
- Date: Sunday, Oct. 9
- TV channel: ESPN
- Live stream: fuboTV
The ESPN family of networks will broadcast all 2022 F1 races in the United States using Sky Sports’ feed, with select races airing on ABC. You can also stream Formula 1 races live in the U.S. with fuboTV, which offers a free trial.
ESPN Deportes serves as the exclusive Spanish-language home for all 2022 F1 races in the U.S.
What time does the F1 race start?
- Date: Sunday, Oct. 9
- Start time: 1 a.m. ET / 6 a.m. BST (2 p.m. local time)
Sunday’s 2022 Japanese Grand Prix is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. local time. Lights out will likely take place just after 1 a.m. ET. ESPN’s prerace show typically airs the hour before the start of the race.
Below is the complete TV schedule for the weekend’s F1 events at the Japanese Grand Prix. All times are Eastern.
| Date | Event | Time (ET) | Time (BST) | TV channel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday, Oct. 6 | Practice 1 | 11 p.m. | 4 a.m.* | ESPN/ESPN2 |
| Friday, Oct. 7 | Practice 2 | 2 a.m. | 7 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN2 |
| Friday, Oct. 7 | Practice 3 | 11 p.m. | 4 a.m.* | ESPN/ESPN2 |
| Saturday, Oct. 8 | Qualifying | 2 a.m. | 7 a.m. | ESPN/ESPN2 |
| Sunday, Oct. 9 | Race | 1 a.m. | 6 a.m. | ESPN |
* + 1 day
Formula 1 live stream for the Singapore Grand Prix
For those who don’t have a cable or satellite subscription, five major OTT TV streaming options carry the ESPN networks — fuboTV, Sling, Hulu, YouTubeTV and DirecTV Stream.
For those who do have a cable or satellite subscription but won’t be in front of a TV, Formula 1 races in 2022 can be streamed live via phones, tablets and other devices on the ESPN app with authentication.
Formula 1 schedule 2022
There are 22 scheduled events on the F1 docket for 2022, one race shy of tying the mark for longest F1 calendar.
The season started in Bahrain on March 20 and will end with the customary Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, although a bit earlier than usual, in November. If the schedule stands, this will be the earliest end of the Formula 1 season since it ended on Nov. 4 in 2013.
Returning to the 2022 F1 slate are the Canadian and Japanese Grand Prix, both of which were canceled in 2021 amid fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.
The calendar also holds the maiden voyage for the Miami Grand Prix, the first of two races in the United States in 2022, with the customary United States GP taking place in October.
The Russian Grand Prix, originally scheduled for Sept. 25, was canceled because of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Here’s the latest schedule (subject to change):
| Date | Race | Track | Start time | TV channel | Winner (Team) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 20 | Bahrain Grand Prix | Bahrain International Circuit | 11 a.m. | ESPN | Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) |
| March 27 | Saudi Arabian Grand Prix | Jeddah Street Circuit | 1 p.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| April 10 | Australian Grand Prix | Albert Park Circuit | 1 a.m. | ESPN | Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) |
| April 24 | Emilia Romagna Grand Prix | Imola Circuit | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| May 8 | Miami Grand Prix | Miami International Autodrome | 3:30 p.m. | ABC | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| May 22 | Spanish Grand Prix | Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya | 9 a.m. | ESPN2 | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| May 29 | Monaco Grand Prix | Circuit de Monaco | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Sergio Perez (Red Bull) |
| June 12 | Azerbaijan Grand Prix | Baku City Circuit | 7 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| June 19 | Canadian Grand Prix | Circuit Gillies-Villenueve | 2 p.m. | ABC | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| July 3 | British Grand Prix | Silverstone Circuit | 10 a.m. | ESPN | Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) |
| July 10 | Austrian Grand Prix | Red Bull Ring | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) |
| July 24 | French Grand Prix | Circuit Paul Ricard | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| July 31 | Hungarian Grand Prix | Hungaroring | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| Aug. 28 | Belgian Grand Prix | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| Sept. 4 | Dutch Grand Prix | Circuit Zandvoort | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| Sept. 11 | Italian Grand Prix | Autodromo Nazionale Monza | 9 a.m. | ESPN | Max Verstappen (Red Bull) |
| Oct. 2 | Singapore Grand Prix | Marina Bay Street Circuit | 8 a.m. | ESPN | Sergio Perez (Red Bull) |
| Oct. 9 | Japanese Grand Prix | Suzuka International Racing Course | 1 a.m. | TBD | TBD |
| Oct. 23 | United States Grand Prix | Circuit of the Americas | 3 p.m. | TBD | TBD |
| Oct. 30 | Mexico City Grand Prix | Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez | 4 p.m. | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 13 | Sao Paulo Grand Prix | Interlagos Circuit | 2 p.m. | TBD | TBD |
| Nov. 20 | Abu Dhabi Grand Prix | Yas Marina Circuit | 8 a.m. | TBD | TBD |
How to watch Formula 1 in Canada
- TV channel: TSN (English); RDS (French)
- Live stream: TSN Direct
For fans in Canada, TSN will carry the English-language telecast of races. For those looking for the French-language broadcast, RDS will have you covered.
Races can also be streamed via TSN’s streaming service, TSN Direct.
How to watch Formula 1 in the United Kingdom
- TV channel: Sky Sports F1
- Live stream: NOW TV
Viewers in the United Kingdom can catch all F1 action on Sky Sports F1, the dedicated F1 channel. For viewers planning to live stream F1 in 2022, you can purchase a Sky Sports Pass on NOW TV.
How to watch Formula 1 in Australia
- TV channel: Fox Sports; Channel 10
- Live stream: Kayo
Fox Sports will carry all races in Australia, with Channel 10 broadcasting the Australian GP.
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