Max Verstappen publicly demanded that Red Bull urgently fix persistent balance and handling problems with its RB22 after a bruising weekend in Suzuka, calling the car “completely undriveable,” saying the situation was “not sustainable” and that he was “beyond” frustrated. The problems showed in qualifying when Verstappen was eliminated in Q2 and started 11th.

He blamed unpredictable rear behavior, chassis instability and setup changes that failed to restore high-speed stability, and said these issues were not caused by the power unit.

Verstappen warned the team must improve the car “quite a lot” before Miami and said he would use the month-long break to work with Red Bull on finding more pace and a more stable balance, while also doing some racing for enjoyment.

Tensions around Ferrari flared after the Japanese Grand Prix as several wheel-to-wheel battles between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton shaped the race. Leclerc finished third and Hamilton sixth, while Oscar Piastri showed strong pace in clean air and pulled away in the opening stints. A Safety Car and tactical pit-stop timing — including Hamilton’s extended first-stint gamble that was aided by the Safety Car — reshaped the final order.

Both drivers voiced frustration after the race. Leclerc accused Mercedes of playing “cheeky” mind games after radio messages from George Russell’s engineer complicated his defence; he also criticized his SF-26 and called for substantial technical changes during the forthcoming break. Hamilton demanded an explanation from Ferrari over power issues he experienced, suggested Leclerc had a power advantage, and said Ferrari had not prioritized his power concerns; Leclerc did not report Hamilton’s problems during the race. Ferrari made no public reprimand after the event.

Former driver Timo Glock publicly urged Ferrari to set clear limits and step in before rivalries escalate into damaging friction, warning that a hands-off approach could allow tensions to become combustible. Team principal Fred Vasseur downplayed the level of frustration, saying he supported hard wheel-to-wheel racing and did not share the drivers’ complaints, framing the exchange as part of normal competitive dynamics. Reports also suggested a possible change of race engineer for Hamilton ahead of the Miami GP, and Ferrari said it will use the forthcoming break to regroup and focus on converting consistent podiums into victories when the season resumes in Miami.

Charles Leclerc accused Mercedes of running a “cheeky” team-radio mind game at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka, saying Mercedes engineers broadcast misleading instructions intended to force battery deployment and provoke defensive errors. Leclerc told Sky Sports and race reporters that George Russell and a Mercedes engineer deliberately misrepresented their strategy over the radio, and that his own engineer, Bryan Bozzi, was relaying messages from Mercedes engineer Marcus Dudley. He said Russell repeatedly did the opposite of those radio instructions for several laps, which forced him to alter his defensive driving, created significant late pressure and required him to fend Russell off in the closing corners.

Leclerc had qualified fourth and produced a strong start to move up early, spending the opening stints chasing McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who enjoyed superior pace in clean air and pulled away. A late Safety Car bunched the field and precipitated a frantic finish: Russell launched an overtake at the final corner on Lap 51, but Leclerc fought back through Turn 1 and crossed the line 0.484 seconds ahead of Russell to secure a podium place. Reports vary on whether Leclerc was officially classified second or third in some accounts, but all sources agree he held off Russell to claim a podium.

Leclerc called the chaotic finish “quite a fun race” and said Ferrari will use the midseason break to regroup and target upgrades before Miami. Telemetry analysis at Suzuka indicated Mercedes held an advantage of roughly 0.240 seconds per lap — an edge that would equate to about a 12-second margin over 53 laps — underlining the performance gap Ferrari must close. The Suzuka result left Leclerc third in the drivers’ standings on 49 points, with Ferrari hoping to turn consistent podiums into wins when the season resumes in Miami.

Drivers escalated public criticism of Formula 1’s new 2026 power-unit and energy-management rules, accusing the sport of sidelining their safety and performance concerns. They are pushing for short-term mitigations before the Miami Grand Prix and for more substantive regulatory adjustments later in the season or next year.

Lewis Hamilton said drivers “have no voting rights” and are not on the committee that shapes technical rules, and several drivers argued the FIA has been “only listening to teams.” Those statements highlight drivers’ concerns about their lack of formal influence over the rulemaking process.

Carlos Sainz warned that the approach creates safety risks, pointing to the Ollie Bearman–Franco Colapinto crash — a closing-speed differential of roughly 50 km/h — as an example, and Bearman walked away without serious injury.

Kimi Antonelli turned pole into a safety-car-influenced victory at the Japanese Grand Prix, moving to the top of the drivers’ championship and becoming the youngest driver in history to lead the standings. He had taken pole in qualifying — his second consecutive pole of the 2026 season and making him the youngest driver to achieve back-to-back poles — with a lap of 1:28.778 after topping FP3 (1:29.362). He started on the front row alongside Mercedes’ George Russell.

McLaren’s Oscar Piastri vaulted from third to first at the start, briefly disrupting Mercedes’ early advantage with Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris close behind.

Late in the race Oliver Bearman suffered a heavy, 50G crash that brought out the safety car and left him with a right-knee contusion. Antonelli, who had not yet pitted, stopped under the safety car and therefore lost less time than rivals who had already stopped, preserving track position. He held off Piastri after the safety-car turnaround to claim the win, with Piastri second and Leclerc third; Russell finished fourth and radioed that the result was “unbelievable.”

The victory — Antonelli’s second consecutive Grand Prix win — vaulted the 19-year-old into the lead of the world championship, leaving Russell nine points adrift. Teams will regroup during a five-week break before the Miami round.