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Max Verstappen took pole position for the 2022 F1 Japanese GP, pipping his championship rival Charles Leclerc at Suzuka. The Dutchman stands a chance of winning his second title in Japan if he manages to win the race with the fastest lap.
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The charging Dutchman added another pole position to his ever-growing tally of qualifying successes in the sport, this time pipping rival Charles Leclerc in the process. The 25-year-old took pole position with his first lap of Q3, surprisingly faster than his second and final lap. Neither his teammate nor the two Ferrari drivers could beat the Red Bull driver's first flying lap at Suzuka.
Verstappen stands a chance of clinching his second title this weekend if he manages to win the race with the fastest lap. With both Ferraris hot on his rear wing, however, it is too soon to say whether the Dutchman will emerge as a two-time world champion at the end of Sunday's race.
Speaking to Johnny Herbert in parc fermé after the session, Max Verstappen said:
“It was pretty incredible to drive here again, especially in qualifying when you’re on low fuel - these cars really come alive in the first sector. Of course, very happy to be on pole, but in general just super happy to be back here. Will be interesting to see the weather. Some say it will be dry, some say it is going to be raining at some point during the race so we need to just see what happens with that. I am quite confident we have a good car so, yeah, I’m excited for tomorrow.”
Max Verstappen isn't thinking too much about winning 2022 F1 title in Japan
Max Verstappen will get his second shot at securing the 2022 F1 World Championship title this weekend at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Verstappen said that while it would certainly be "extra special" to seal it at Suzuka, given Red Bull's association with Honda, he is not putting too much pressure on it. To secure the title this weekend, the Dutchman will either have to win the race with an extra point for the fastest lap or score eight more points than Charles Leclerc and six more points than his teammate Sergio Perez.
Speaking at the press conference ahead of the Japanese GP, Max Verstappen made it clear that his goal for the weekend is to maximize his results, just like any other GP weekend. He said:
“It would make it a little bit extra special because of our relationship with Honda. I think it was already a shame that we couldn’t be here last year already in a title fight, so that’s why we’re really looking forward to being back here and then we’ll see what happens. We need a perfect weekend, that’s for sure. I mean, it would be very nice if it happens here, but if it doesn’t happen here, I will be even more in favour of the next race. It doesn’t really change anything; you want to have a good weekend and try to maximise everything you can, and of course I need a perfect weekend to be able to clinch the title here but, to be honest, I’m not really thinking about it too much.”
With both Ferraris hot on his tail, however, Max Verstappen will surely have to fight for a potential win at Suzuka.
