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F1 Japanese GP preview: Red Bull’s Tsunoda gets a chance on his home track

Red Bull Yuki Tsunoda to drive for Red Bull as Max Verstappen teammate

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Suzuka Circuit during the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix.
F1

The 2025 Japanese Grand Prix, the third Grand Prix of the 2025 Formula 1 schedule, takes place this weekend. The main race is on Sunday, April 6, with practice sessions and qualifying on Friday and Saturday.

The 2025 season is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in recent years. Four teams have the Constructors’ Championship as the goal, and there’s at least one driver aiming to take the World Drivers’ Championship crown from Max Verstappen. Verstappen has been the World Champion for four consecutive years and is widely regarded as an exceptional driver, even when handling a difficult car.

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So far this season, McLaren has stood out. They currently lead the championship by 21 points. Lando Norris won the first Grand Prix of the season in Australia, and teammate Oscar Piastri won the following week in China. Ferrari and Mercedes are also strong contenders, each having competitive cars.

Despite Red Bull’s reported struggles with their car, Max Verstappen demonstrated in the second half of the 2024 season that he excels even under challenging conditions—perhaps especially in difficult circumstances—proving why he is the reigning champion.

Since Sunday’s race is in Japan, fans wanting to watch live will need to either stay up very late or wake up extremely early.

The Suzuka Circuit F1 race track

Suzuka Circuit race track in Japan.
Courtesy of Formula 1

The 2025 Japanese Grand Prix will be held at the Suzuka Circuit. This attractive track was originally built as a test track for the Honda Motor Company in 1962 and first hosted Formula 1 races in 1987.

Suzuka features an amazing straightaway that drivers enjoy, along with one DRS zones. Turns two through six have a series of exciting, snaking curves, and there’s one very tight hairpin at turn 11.

The Japanese Grand Prix consists of 53 laps of 3.6 miles per lap, for a total of 191 miles. The track fastest lap record was set in 2019 by Lewis Hamilton, driving for Mercedes. Hamilton completed a lap in one minute, 30.983 seconds. This will be Hamilton’s first time driving the Suzuka Circuit as a Ferrari driver.

Teams and drivers to watch during the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix

Red Bull drivers Yuki Tsunoda and Max Verstappen.
F1

In the past two weeks since the Chinese Grand Prix, much of the news has been about Red Bull shuffling drivers. After just two races in 2025, Red Bull moved full-season rookie Liam Lawson to the organization’s Racing Bulls junior team. Red Bull also moved five-season veteran Yuki Tsunoda from the Racing Bulls to drive for Red Bull, where he will be the four-time World Champion Max Verstappen teammate.

Red Bull livery for the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix.
F1

Red Bull will also feature a new one-time livery for cars and drivers at Suzuka, honoring its partnership with Honda, which ends this year.

How and when to watch the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix

The Japanese Grand Prix schedule of events favors night owls and very early risers.

Event Day Time (PST)
Free Practice 1 Friday, April 4 1:30 A.M.
Free Practice 2 Friday, April 4 5 A.M.
Free Practice 3 Saturday, April 5 1:30 A.M.
Qualifying Saturday, April 5 5 A.M.
Race Sunday, April 6 4 A.M.

In the U.S., the F1 events are broadcast on ESPN and F1 TV Pro.

Bruce Brown
Bruce Brown
Former Contributing Editor
Bruce Brown Contributing Editor   As a Contributing Editor to the Auto teams at Digital Trends and TheManual.com, Bruce…
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