06:31
Russell improves on his second effort on the soft tyre, but only goes third. He's 0.205s back on Piastri. We're wanting to say game on, but would that be tempting fate?
Antonelli, Mercedes, F1, Japan, 2026
© XPB Images
F1 Japanese GP Friday practice as it happened
Live text coverage of Friday's practice action at the F1 Japanese Grand Prix
KEY MOMENTS
- FP2 at the Japanese Grand Prix topped by Piastri
- George Russell and Mercedes lead the championship and the times in FP1
- Norris, Bortoleto and Lindblad suffer reliability woes in FP2
The 2026 Formula 1 season will continue at Suzuka for the Japanese Grand Prix, which marks the third stop on the calendar.
Mercedes returns to Suzuka off the back of a dominant start to the 2026 season, with the Silver Arrows claiming pole and victories at the Australian and Chinese Grands Prix.
George Russell leads the championship from Mercedes team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who scored a maiden pole and victory last time out in China.
Ferrari will hope to close the gap as it continued its trend as Mercedes' closest challenger in China, with Lewis Hamilton taking a maiden podium for the Scuderia last time out after a thrilling duel with team-mate Charles Leclerc.
Ahead of this weekend's Japanese Grand Prix, the FIA announced that it had reduced the energy harvesting limit from 9MJ to 8MJ, in a bid to combat energy management fears some had expressed coming to Suzuka.
The hope is that this will reduce the amount of superclipping seen during qualifying laps at Suzuka, with some drivers highlighting in China that the new cars could peg back the speed of some corners like 130R.
McLaren will be looking to get its season back on track at Suzuka, after suffering a double non-start in China due to a battery issue related to the Mercedes power unit.
Red Bull will also be hoping for better fortunes in Japan, after it struggled throughout the China weekend, while Max Verstappen retired due to a mechanical issue.
Verstappen grabbed headlines on Thursday at Suzuka after he refused to begin his media debrief until one journalist was ejected, over bitter feelings about questions over his clash with Russell in Spain last year.
The Dutchman also comes to Japan off the back of being disqualified from a victory in the NLS2 at the Nurburgring.
Fernando Alonso will sit out FP1 at Suzuka on Friday morning, with Jak Crawford taking his place at Aston Martin. The Spaniard was absent from Thursday's media day owing to the birth of his first child.
2026 Japanese Grand Prix Friday schedule
FP1 - 2:30am-3:30am GMT
FP2 - 6am-7am GMT
27 Mar 2026
06:28
Hamilton failed to improve on his first quali sim. But it's Piastri who has unexpectedly set the pace on the first raft of quali sims. It could be that he simply got a clean lap where others didn't, or he may have unlocked some pace. Either way, eyebrows have definitely been raised.
06:26
A 1m30.133s puts Piastri to the top, although his last sector definitely had some time left on the table. Antonelli can't match him!
06:23
Good news for McLaren. Norris is in the car, the wheel has gone on, and the tyre blankets are coming off. Time to make up for lost time.
06:22
Top 10 after 20 minutes
20 minutes into the session, and the times look very interesting. Before the qualifying sims get underway, your top 10 is:
- Leclerc
- Piastri
- Russell
- Antonello
- Hamilton
- Lawson
- Hulkenberg
- Verstappen
- Hadjar
- Gasly
06:20
On the plus side for Aston Martin, both cars are currently running, although they remain the two slowest drivers to have set a time, with Stoll 0.3s off Bottas's Cadillac.
06:19
Perez is one of four drivers yet to set a time, with work continuing on his brakes at Cadillac. Given the six DNS's registered so far this season, this reliability doesn't give confidence that we'll see a full 22-car grid come Sunday.
06:13
Albon out...but not
Albon causes the yellow flags to fly as he stops on the track on entry to turn 1. Reporting a throttle issue, he manages to reset the system, but Williams will want to take a look at that car.
Bortoleto is also in the garage with his car on stands.
06:12
Not again for Lindblad
Lindblad looks set to lose a significant portion of FP2, if not the whole session, as he is out of the car and being consoled in the garage. The car is going on the stands and it does not look good.
06:11
Albon again finds himself in the wars, as he comes across a slow-moving Cadillac on the entry to the Esseses. Collision avoided, but that could have been nasty.
06:08
Game on?
Normal order is resumed, briefly, as Russell and Antonelli take the top two slots, before Piastri hits back with a time 0.073s better than either Mercedes driver. Game on?
06:06
With neither Mercedes having set a time, we have an order that sees Hadjar lead Verstappen in a Red Bull 1-2, with Hulkenberg third. That will all change soon, as Antonelli and Russell begin their first efforts.
06:04
"Upshifts are still fine, but downshifts are a problem," reports Lindblad. Anti-stall is biting on downshift, and he is instructed to return to the garage.
06:01
Green flag
FP2 is underway. Although not for Norris. The remainder of the field are flowing out onto the track.
06:00
Problems for Norris. McLaren has confirmed a hydraulic leak, meaning he will remain in the garage for some time.
05:51
10 minutes to go before we begin to get some answers with the usual plan of quali sims followed by race sims likely to be the order of the day.
05:50
A key place to keep an eye on in the coming hour is The Spoon curve. The corner leads onto the longest straight on the track and is one of just two places where straightline mode can be activated. It is also where most of the battery will be deployed, so a clean exit is crucial to setting a strong time.
05:41
As has been the case so far this term, Mercedes proved the team to beat in FP1, with Russell leading Antonelli to a 1-2. McLaren and Ferrari once again find themselves battling to be second best, with Max Verstappen clinging on to the lead pack.
The midfield battle is as intense as ever, while Aston Martin is struggling once again, with Jak Crawford and Lance Stroll footing the FP1 order. Fernando Alonso is back in the car for FP2, replacing reserve driver Crawford.
05:38
Welcome back
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of FP2 from the Japanese Grand Prix. There has already been plenty of action from the earlier session, with Albon and Perz providing the first incident, this after Albon came millimetres away from splashing his Williams across the wall at Degna 2. But now, the action continues!
03:59
And with that, we will be back at around 5:30AM, to bring you all of the action from FP2 at Suzuka. Until then, enjoy an hour or two of sleep! Thanks for joining us!
03:57
Full FP1 Results
| 2026 F1 Japanese GP - Practice Results (1) | |||||
| Pos | Driver | Nat. | Team | Time | Laps |
| 1 | George Russell | GBR | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team | 1m.31.666s | 27 |
| 2 | Kimi Antonelli | ITA | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team | 1m31.692s | 26 |
| 3 | Lando Norris | GBR | McLaren Mastercard F1 Team | 1m31.798s | 20 |
| 4 | Oscar Piastri | AUS | McLaren Mastercard F1 Team | 1m31.865s | 23 |
| 5 | Charles Leclerc | MON | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 1m31.955s | 25 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | GBR | Scuderia Ferrari HP | 1m32.040s | 23 |
| 7 | Max Verstappen | NED | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1m32.457s | 27 |
| 8 | Liam Lawson | NWZ | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 1m32.529s | 27 |
| 9 | Esteban Ocon | FRA | TGR Haas F1 Team | 1m32.601s | 23 |
| 10 | Arvid Lindblad | GBR | Visa Cash App Racing Bulls F1 Team | 1m32.665s | 29 |
| 11 | Gabriel Bortoleto | BRA | Audi Revolut F1 Team | 1m32.759s | 27 |
| 12 | Nico Hulkenberg | GER | Audi Revolut F1 Team | 1m32.798s | 26 |
| 13 | Isack Hadjar | FRA | Oracle Red Bull Racing | 1m32.803s | 27 |
| 14 | Oliver Bearman | GBR | TGR Haas F1 Team | 1m32.900s | 27 |
| 15 | Pierre Gasly | FRA | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 1m32.978s | 25 |
| 16 | Franco Colapinto | ARG | BWT Alpine F1 Team | 1m33.361s | 24 |
| 17 | Carlos Sainz | SPA | Atlassian Williams F1 Team | 1m33.383s | 26 |
| 18 | Alex Albon | THA | Atlassian Williams F1 Team | 1m33.697s | 22 |
| 19 | Sergio Perez | MEX | Cadillac F1 Team | 1m343.221s | 18 |
| 20 | Valtteri Bottas | FIN | Cadillac F1 Team | 1m34.490s | 24 |
| 21 | Lance Stroll | CAN | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | 1m35.294s | 22 |
| 22 | Jak Crawford | USA | Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team | 1m36.362s | 11 |
03:32
Chequered flag
The flag falls on FP1 and Russell tops the times from Antonelli. Norris and Piastri follow for McLaren, with Leclerc and Hamilton continuing the two-by-two formation for Ferrari.
03:31
Leclerc brings the entertainment value as he goes three wide with Gasly and Piastri into Turn 1. Spectacular racing...in FP1!
03:27
Another embarrassing one for Perez to add to his list of collisions this year. Albon was attempting a pass on the inside of the chicane, and the Cadillac driver simply didn't see him and turned into the Williams. Front wing damage, debris on the track, and some very irate radio messages from both camps. it will be investigated after the session.
03:25
Crawford's session is over. The car is being taken to bits and the American is on the pit wall.