Questions and answers about the Japanese Grand Prix

Suzuka (SID) What's up? Formula 1 continues its world tour at a horrendous pace. From Sochi on Russia's Black Sea coast, the PS circus traveled 8000 kilometers and six time zones further east to Suzuka. The Japanese Grand Prix (Sunday, 7.10 a.m. CEST/RTL) is traditionally one of the highlights in the racing calendar. The drivers love the track because of the many fast corners, and the passionate fans in Japan contribute to the spectacle. How did Sebastian Vettel feel when he traveled to Japan? With no good one. The Ferrari driver never tires of praising his remaining chances in the title fight. But since the Russian Grand Prix, the Heppenheimer no longer has the world championship in his own hands. Rival Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes moved ahead by 50 points with his victory in Sochi. How can Vettel still become world champion? Even if Vettel wins each of the remaining five races, four third places and one second place would be enough for Hamilton to win the title. It's hard to imagine that things will be close again given Hamilton's record since mid-July (five wins in six races). Probably only extraordinary events, i.e. at least one “zero round” by the Brit, can cause explosiveness again. However, Hamilton has seen the checkered flag 41 times in the last 40 races. It was only at the beginning of July in Austria that problems with fuel pressure thwarted his plans. At the moment it looks as if Hamilton could complete his fifth title with the USA/Mexico double pack in the second half of October. Besides the raw numbers, what else speaks for Hamilton? First of all, momentum. Every year, the four-time champion reliably drives a little better in the second half of the season than in spring and summer. But this year it seems to be flying. In addition, Mercedes is now putting everything on the Hamilton card. With the unpopular and heatedly discussed swap of places by team order between Valtteri Bottas and the 33-year-old Brit in Sochi, Mercedes sacrificed its long-standing principles for pragmatism, but massively increased its chances of winning the Drivers' and Constructors' World Championships for the fifth year in a row. Ferrari remained very hesitant on this issue until the end. One of several factors why it will be difficult for Maranello to win its first drivers' title since 2007. What role does the weather play in Japan? It is typhoon season in East Asia. "Trami", which caused severe devastation in Japan, has just left and now "Kong Rey" is heading for the main island of Honshu. In Suzuka there will only be noticeable spurts on Friday and Saturday, but even these can affect the free practice sessions and qualifying. That would be more of a disadvantage for Vettel: Over the course of the season, the Mercedes was the best car in the wet. Almost 30 degrees and sunshine are expected for the race.

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Questions and answers about the Japanese Grand Prix

Japan follows Russia – at least in the Formula 1 World Championship. Here are the answers to the most important questions about the Japanese GP.

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