2024 F1 Japanese GP Qualifying: Top 5 Conclusions

The 2024 F1 Japanese GP saw Max Verstappen secure his fifth pole position in a row. The Red Bull driver fended off Sergio Perez by less than a tenth as the team secured a front-row lockout.

In P3, we had Lando Norris putting together an impressive lap time that catapulted him to the second row. The session was an interesting one, with far too many team radios being bewildered about their lack of pace.

In a session where Ferrari struggled to find form, Max Verstappen secured his fifth consecutive pole position at the F1 Japanese GP. What did we learn? Let's take a look.

2024 F1 Japanese GP Qualifying: What did we learn?

#1 The gap between Red Bull and the chasing pack has decreased

Max Verstappen cruised to a pole in the F1 Japanese GP in 2023. He was around seven-tenths of a second quicker than the driver in P2 (Oscar Piastri). In 2024, the gap is nowhere close to being as big. It's around three-tenths of a second to a non-Red Bull car in Lando Norris.

The opposition is starting to close up to Red Bull, and while the team still has the advantage, it's shrinking.

#2 Ferrari and Charles Leclerc need to sort the car out (and the driver)

You cannot have too many weekends where the driver ends the qualifying process frustrated and claims that he has no idea what's going on. That's precisely what Charles Leclerc did in Melbourne, where he just gave up on his final lap in Q3.

The Monacan did the same again in the F1 Japanese GP, with the Ferrari driver looking confused by what the car was doing. The more this continues, the more it spirals, and that's something Fred Vasseur needs to nip in the bud.

#3 A post-upgrade McLaren is going to be very interesting

The fact that an underdeveloped McLaren is a podium contender in Suzuka is very interesting. Andrea Stella was quite open when he said that the team had missed some of the targets that they had set out for in pre-season but claimed this will be addressed with the first major upgrade in the season.

The team made a massive jump last year when the car upgrade finally came. At the moment, they are already in contention for a podium and it will be interesting to see what changes when the upgrade comes.

#4 Aston Martin has made a step forward

Fernando Alonso will be happy with the progress made by Aston Martin this weekend. The car looked far more competitive on track than it has in general, and the upgrades appear to have worked for the car.

It remains to be seen how Aston Martin performs in the race but the team should be happy with the F1 Japanese GP so far.

#5 The unsung heroes deserve their due

Drivers like Esteban Ocon, Nico Hulkenberg, and Yuki Tsunoda deserve their credit. Ocon has been dragging the Alpine all season while Hulkenberg's qualifying was once again impressive. Yuki, on his part, grabbed another win in qualifying over his teammate and got into Q3.

Overall, while drivers like Lance Stroll and Zhou Guanyu continue to struggle, there are drivers in the midfield who just don't get the credit that they deserve.