The 2026 Japanese Grand Prix was marked by Kimi Antonelli’s victory, who took advantage of a perfectly timed Safety Car. The Italian finished ahead of Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc, the latter having resisted George Russell’s attacks until the end. This race was also overshadowed by the impressive accident of Oliver Bearman, which revealed the dangers of competition.
An accident delays the start
The first news of the day concerns a major accident that occurred during the Porsche Cup, the support race. This crash caused a ten-minute delay for the start, as the barriers needed to be repaired.
Kimi Antonelli finds himself in pole position, with George Russell alongside him, forming a 100% Mercedes front row. In the second row, Oscar Piastri (McLaren), still seeking his first Sunday start of the season, and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) take their places. The third row is occupied by their teammates, Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton, two British world champions.
The rest of the grid is completed by Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Isack Hadjar (Red Bull), Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi), and Arvid Lindblad (Racing Bulls). Max Verstappen’s Red Bull only appears in 11th position. At the start of the formation lap, the choice of tires proves revealing: 21 of the 22 drivers opt for medium tires, with the only exception being Valtteri Bottas in 20th position who chooses hard tires.
The Mercedes stuck at the start
The start for the Mercedes is disastrous! Immediately, Antonelli and Russell are overtaken by Piastri, Leclerc, and Norris. Hamilton tries to squeeze between Russell and Antonelli, but the Italian quickly regains the advantage over the seven-time world champion at the beginning of the second lap.
Further back in the pack, an intense battle ensues between Hadjar and Verstappen, who eventually gets the better of his opponent. Hadjar is then surprised by Esteban Ocon, who sneaks into tenth position. In this sequence, Russell manages to overtake Norris to move up to third place.
From the start of the fourth lap, Russell begins to threaten Leclerc while remaining 1.9 seconds behind leader Piastri. For his part, Antonelli struggles to shake off Norris.
After five laps out of the 53 scheduled, Piastri leads with less than a second ahead of Russell. Leclerc follows three seconds back, while Norris is 3.9 seconds behind the leader. Antonelli is 4.2 seconds off the lead, and Hamilton is five seconds behind. Gasly holds seventh place ahead of Verstappen, who has managed to get past Lindblad.
Piastri keeps Russell at bay
George Russell (Mercedes) and Oscar Piastri (McLaren) engage in an intense duel on the track.
At the end of the eighth lap, Russell attacks Piastri in the chicane. The Australian lets the Mercedes pass before immediately countering on the straight to regain the lead. Behind them, Leclerc and Norris collide under Antonelli’s watchful eyes.
On the 10th lap, Piastri maintains a six-tenths lead over Russell and a two-second gap to the Leclerc-Norris-Antonelli trio. Hamilton is himself distanced from the pack in sixth place. Antonelli eventually overtakes Norris at the chicane at the end of the 11th lap.
Piastri gradually stabilizes his lead around nine to ten tenths over Russell while Leclerc is under pressure from Antonelli. Hadjar is putting pressure on Lindblad but fails to get through.
At the end of the 15th lap, Antonelli overtakes Leclerc in the chicane, but the latter immediately counters on the straight to reclaim his third place. Norris is the first of the leaders to pit on the 16th lap, followed by Leclerc, who exits ahead of him.
On the 18th lap, Piastri also dives into the pits, allowing Russell to temporarily take the lead. Meanwhile, Antonelli closes in to just 2.5 seconds after 19 laps.
Bearman crashes, Antonelli inherits the lead
The race takes a turn on the 22nd lap when Oliver Bearman crashes violently in Spoon after being caught off guard by an unexpected slowdown. Fortunately, he manages to exit his car on his own but is visibly limping with a bruised right knee.
The deployment of the Safety Car allows drivers like Antonelli and Hamilton to pit without losing too much time. Thanks to this lifesaving intervention, Antonelli retains the lead ahead of Piastri and Russell, while Hamilton settles into fourth position ahead of Leclerc and Norris.
The race resumes on the 28th lap with Antonelli now in front without difficulty against Piastri. Meanwhile, Russell is caught off guard by Hamilton on the straight while Gasly resists against Verstappen.
After 30 laps completed, Antonelli has almost a three-second lead over Piastri, while Hamilton is under pressure from Russell and Leclerc right behind him. Lance Stroll must retire on the 31st lap due to mechanical issues.
Antonelli pulls away, Russell gets stuck
Antonelli gradually extends his gap to four seconds over Piastri, who has a one-second lead over Hamilton. However, the latter is under heavy pressure from Russell while Leclerc also remains in the slipstream of the Mercedes.
On the 36th lap, as Antonelli stretches the gap to five seconds, Russell begins an offensive against Hamilton, but the latter fiercely defends his position at the first corner. It is ultimately Leclerc who takes advantage of an opportunity to overtake Hamilton before Spoon.
On the 40th lap, Antonelli has an advantage of nearly eight seconds over Piastri, while Hamilton sees Leclerc closing in very closely behind him. A battle ensues between the two Ferrari drivers as they enter the chicane.
On the 42nd lap, Leclerc takes the outside line to overtake Hamilton while Russell also takes advantage of this situation to pass his compatriot shortly after. However, Antonelli’s lead allows him to build a comfortable margin as Norris re-enters the fight with Hamilton.
George Russell (Mercedes) faces Lando Norris (McLaren) in a fierce duel.
With less than ten laps to go, Antonelli has a lead of about twelve seconds over Piastri, while Leclerc is just behind the McLaren with Russell still in tow. Hamilton makes a mistake at the braking and goes straight while Norris desperately tries to gain his position but is denied by the stewards.
At the end of the 47th lap, Norris finally overtakes Hamilton in the chicane, but the latter reclaims his fifth place in the next straight. Another battle erupts between Gasly and Verstappen while Russell continues to apply intense pressure on Leclerc.
It is finally on the 50th lap that Russell finally finds the opening to overtake Leclerc, but the latter immediately counters at the first corner to reclaim his podium position. Behind them, Norris also manages to definitively gain the upper hand over Hamilton shortly after.
Kimi Antonelli thus wins his second Grand Prix of his career ahead of Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc. George Russell finishes fourth followed by Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, and Pierre Gasly, while Max Verstappen completes the top 10 with Lawson and Ocon just behind him.
In summary
- Kimi Antonelli wins the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix thanks to an opportune Safety Car
- Oscar Piastri finishes second after a solid performance
- Charles Leclerc withstands George Russell’s attacks until the finish
- Oliver Bearman’s accident reminds us of the inherent dangers of competition
- The performance of the Mercedes remains concerning despite their initial position
- Norris and Gasly continue to showcase their potential throughout the race
