Japanese Grand Prix Qualifying LIVE Updates: The Qualifying at Suzuka is finally underway, and Mercedes arrive as clear favourites. After back-to-back one-two finishes in Australia and China, they’ve carried that momentum into Japan, topping the practice sessions. And they did it again. Mercedes locked the front row for the third time straight in the season with Kimi Antonelli securind Pole ahead of George Russell. It was a nightmare for Red Bull as Max Verstappen was eliminated in Q2, ending his four-pole streak at Suzuka.
In FP3, Kimi Antonelli continued his brilliance from Shanghai, setting the fastest lap in 1:29.362, over two tenths quicker than teammate George Russell who was second fastest. This weekend is special for fans, as it’s the final race before a five-week break following the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix. So let’s make the most of the Japanese Grand Prix 2026 and follow all the highlights from the qualifying right here.
Thankyou for joining us. That’s all from our end for today. Come back tomorrow again for the live coverage of the Japanese Grand Prix 2026 on Sunday, where one might see Kimi Antonelli clinch his second win of career. Here’s the wonder kid, the 19-year-old Mercedes driver who will start from pole tomorrow! See you, Kimi!
| Pos | Driver | Team | Gap to Pole |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:28.778 |
| 2 | George Russell | Mercedes | +0.298 |
| 3 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +0.354 |
| 4 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +0.627 |
| 5 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +0.631 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +0.789 |
| 7 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +0.913 |
| 8 | Isack Hadjar | Red Bull | +1.200 |
| 9 | Gabriel Bortoleto | Audi | +1.496 |
| 10 | Arvid Lindblad | RB | +1.541 |
| 11 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | 1:30.262 |
| 12 | Esteban Ocon | Haas | 1:30.309 |
| 13 | Nico Hulkenberg | Audi | 1:30.387 |
| 14 | Liam Lawson | RB | 1:30.495 |
| 15 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | 1:30.627 |
| 16 | Carlos Sainz | Williams | 1:31.033 |
| 17 | Alexander Albon | Williams | — |
| 18 | Oliver Bearman | Haas | — |
| 19 | Sergio Perez | Sauber | — |
| 20 | Valtteri Bottas | Sauber | — |
| 21 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | — |
| 22 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | — |
The 19-year-old young Italian secured the pole in Suzuka, almost three tenths ahead of George Russell. His second consecutive pole, still the youngest to do so. He is the driver who replaced the seven-time world champion in Mercedes and Toto Wolff never regretted his decision.
For the question just know since 1991, only three times has a driver won at Suzuka without starting from the front row.
With four minutes to go in this battle for pole, we can see Antonelli repeating his Shanghai magic ahead of Russell. Piastri on third, and Norris is fourth ahead of the Ferraris.
At the moemnt Leclerc is fifth, sixth tenths behind Antonelli who got the provisional pole. Hamilton is struggling on 6th place one tenth behind his teammate. Meanwhile, they enter the pitlane for a new tyre!
Now the final session of the qualifying is underway! Here the real battle for pole begins and it feels awkward to say but fir the first time in four years Max Verstappen is not here in Q3 at Suzuka.
At the moment Antonelli leads registering a lap of 1:28.778. He is two tenths ahead of his teammate.
Verstappen, Ocon, Hulkenberg, Lawson, Colapinto, Sainz
Another talking point from this session is the fact that the rookie Arvind Lindblad made a mega lap to avoid the elimination at the very end!
The second qualifying session ends and what remains the biggest shock is Max Verstappen!!! He did not make it to the Q3!!! That ends the Dutchman’s four pole streak at Suzuka.
At the moment with 5 minutes remaining in the Q2, the drivers in the drop out zone are Hulkenberg, Ocon, Lindblad, Colopinto, Lawson, Sainz
All of them are in the pits to change tyres. Piastri who just bolted the softs set a great laptime 1:29.451 taking the lead.
Red Bull look a bit more competitive this time, slotting in just behind the Ferraris and Mercedes. Max Verstappen is currently sixth, about five tenths off Kimi Antonelli, who holds the fastest lap with a 1:29.774. Meanwhile, Isack Hadjar is up in fifth, two tenths ahead of Max.
Coming into the Q2, the battle for pole remians well alive between Mercedes and Ferrari. Leclerc was leading for amlost 4 minutes but then Antonelli replaces him on top.
Albon, Bearman, Perez, Bottas, Alonso, Stroll
17. Albon
18. Sainz
19. Bottas
20. Perez
21. Stroll
22. Alonso
“Something does not feel right,” said the Mercedes ace Russell as he remains on P7 seven tenths behind on the current leader Charles Leclerc who just set the fastest lap in 1:29.915.
And here wo go! Antonelli registers the first lap and he surpassed the Ferrari ace by just 0.043s. Oscar Piastri is bringing the FP2 momentum here, he is currentlt the third fastest.
As of now Charles Leclerc of Ferrari is leading the chart with 1:30.078 on soft tyres. The Mercedes are yet to make a lap.
The Japanese GP qualifying is underway! Lawson sets the first lap time, 1:31.785. And in case you missed it, the Racing Bulls’ new livery for Suzuka is absolutely stunning, perhaps one of the best creating in recent seasons.
Lap distance: 5.807km; Total distance: 307.471km (53 laps)
2025 pole position: Max Verstappen (Netherlands) Red Bull one minute 26.983 seconds
2025 race winner: Verstappen
Race lap record: Kimi Antonelli (Italy) Mercedes 1:30.965 (2025)
Just 10 minutes to go until qualifying gets underway at Suzuka. It’s so beautiful out there!
Ollie Bearman had a small moment in FP3, but handled it brilliantly. The Haas driver, who is also running a special Godzilla-inspired livery this weekend at Suzuka, briefly lost control of the car but managed to avoid the barriers.
Several teams launched a special one-off livery for the Japanese Grand Prix. Mercedes brought their ‘wolf’ inspired design with the tagline ‘unleashing the beast.’ Have a look at the wolf’s eyes!
Lewis Hamilton unveiled a special edition helmet for the Japanese Grand Prix during Friday’s practice session. The design features a clean white base with bold red and gold accents, making it stand out on track. The helmet is inspired by Kintsugi, the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with precious metals. Instead of hiding cracks, the art highlights them, turning flaws into something beautiful.
Specifically for the Japanese Grand Prix 2026, the FIA introduced a last-minute technical tweak to the energy management rules to improve the qualifying race. Now, the maximum permitted energy recharge per lap has been reduced from 9.0 MJ to 8.0 MJ. This aims at reducing the heavy clipping and lift-and-coast during push laps.
(New Fans Corner – Pros can skip!)
In case, you dont know how the qualifying race works, here’s a quck guide for you. It’s the race that takes place a day before the Grand Prix. It decides the starting order for the race on Sunday. The faster you are in qualifying, the higher up you start on the grid, and that can make a huge difference. There are three qualifying sessions:
However, for this weekend specially, the FIA has tweaked a techinal rule, check in the next update.
In India, fans can watch the Japanese Grand Prix 2026 live on the FanCode app and website, while F1 TV Pro also offers full race coverage worldwide. But….if you’re new to Formula 1 and still getting used to the rules and how it all works, don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. We’ll bring you simple explanations, quick analysis, and all the updates as they happen. Stay with us and follow the live updates from the qualifying race.
Hello and good morning! Yes, it might be little early for a weekend, but go grab your coffee and wake yourself up because qualifying at Suzuka is about to begin.
In Japan, it’s around 3:00 PM, the skies are clear, and there’s no sign of rain. Perfect conditions for a proper flat-out session. Let’s get started.
