Japanese Grand Prix: Curious Statistics
Several curious statistical insights from the Japanese Grand Prix...
Qualification
In the last round in China, Antonelli became the youngest pole holder in Formula 1 history, and in Suzuka confirmed his brilliant form by securing his second pole of his career and the 146th in the history of the Mercedes team.
Antonelli's pole in Suzuka is the 50th for Italian drivers.
George Russell qualified second and started from the front row for the 20th time in his career. For the third consecutive race and the 85th time in history, Mercedes drivers occupied the entire front row of the starting grid. Mercedes is the absolute leader in this statistic.
Third place in qualifying is the best result for Oscar Piastri this season. Last year, Oscar also started third in Suzuka.
In the third Grand Prix out of three this season, Charles Leclerc qualified fourth.
Fifth place in qualifying is the best result for Lando Norris this season.
Sixth place on the grid in Suzuka is Lewis Hamilton's best result since 2022.
For the second consecutive Grand Prix, Pierre Gasly qualified seventh. This is his best starting position in Suzuka driving for Alpine.
Isaac Hajar qualified eighth and leads Max Verstappen in qualifying with a score of 2:1 this season.
Ninth place for Gabriel Bortoleto is the best result for Audi this season.
Verstappen qualified 11th and for the second time this season failed to reach the final.
Race
By winning the Japanese Grand Prix, Kimi Antonelli achieved his second career victory – his second in a row this season and secured his second career hat-trick (pole, fastest lap, and victory).
Antonelli became the youngest leader in the drivers' standings in Formula 1 history.
The youngest leaders in the drivers' standings
Driver
Age
Grand Prix
1. Kimi Antonelli
19 years 7 months 4 days
Japan '26
2. Lewis Hamilton
22 years 4 months 6 days
Spain '07
3. Bruce McLaren
22 years 5 months 8 days
Argentina '60
4. Sebastian Vettel
23 years 4 months 11 days
Abu Dhabi '10
5. Kimi Raikkonen
23 years 5 months 6 days
Malaysia '03
Antonelli became the first Italian driver to win two consecutive races since Alberto Ascari in 1953.
Antonelli's podium is the 315th for the Mercedes team, which ties them with Williams for third place in the overall standings. McLaren is in second place (559 podiums), and Ferrari is in first (839 podiums).
In Suzuka, Oscar Piastri started in a race for the first time this year, finished for the first time – and climbed to the podium for the 27th time in his career. He has the same number of podiums as Bruce McLaren and Ralf Schumacher. This is Piastri's tenth second-place finish in his career and his third podium in Suzuka.
The Japanese Grand Prix is the 60th race in Piastri's career in which he earned points.
Finishing third, Charles Leclerc climbed to the podium for the second time this season and the 52nd time in his career. Third place is a repeat of the Monegasque's best result in Suzuka, as he also finished third in 2022.
George Russell's fourth place is his worst result of the season but his best career result in Suzuka. Russell has not been on the podium in three consecutive races, while Antonelli has already achieved that.
For the second time this season, Lando Norris finished fifth.
Finishing seventh, Pierre Gasly earned points for the first time in his career in the first three races of the season. This is the 80th race in which Gasly has earned points.
Max Verstappen's eighth place is his worst result in Suzuka since 2015, when he first raced on the Japanese track.
Finishing ninth, Liam Lawson earned points for the first time in his career in Suzuka.
Finishing tenth, Esteban Ocon earned his first points of the season. This is the twentieth consecutive race in which Ocon has finished.
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Japanese Grand Prix: Curious Statistics
Several curious statistical findings from the results of the Japanese Grand Prix...