Lewis took his 71st career victory today - his 50th with Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, ninth of the 2018 season and fourth at the Suzuka International Racing Circuit. Valtteri came in second to complete the second 1-2 for the team in a row - his first podium at the Japanese Grand Prix and 30th podium finish in Formula One.
Today's result marks the fifth consecutive win in Suzuka for Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport and tenth win at the Japanese Grand Prix for Mercedes-Benz Power.
Lewis (331 points) leads the Drivers' Championship by 67 points from Sebastian Vettel (264 points) with Valtteri (207 points) in P3 and with 100 points left to be scored in the season. Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport (538 points) lead Ferrari (460 points) by 78 points in the Constructors' Championship with 172 points remaining to be scored in the 2018 season.
Matt Deane, Chief Mechanic, accepted the Constructors' trophy on behalf of the team.
Toto Wolff: That was a very tense Grand Prix for us. It might have looked pretty smooth from outside but within the team we were managing blisters in the tyres, some driveability issues with Lewis' power unit and very competitive Red Bulls behind us. So to take a 1-2 for the second race in a row is pretty special - not just for the trackside team here after a tough back-to-back, but for everybody back in Brackley and Brixworth who have poured their efforts into developing this car and power unit. There hasn't been a single silver bullet - just a lot of hard work, creativity and a mind set to channel the pressure of the competition and keep pushing hard to achieve our objectives. The approach will remain the same in the coming races: we will not let up one single bit when it comes to bringing more performance to the car, and keep taking everything day by day. It has been an important week for the team and we have come out of the challenges we faced even stronger than before. From here, every race is like a mini-championship and we need to keep aligning our race weekends in the same way we achieved in Sochi and Suzuka.
Andrew Shovlin: A great result and overall a really strong weekend for the team and drivers. The car has been fast and reliable which is just what we have needed over the last few races. We didn't really know what to expect going into the race as we'd not had a chance to practice in hot conditions, so in the first stint we were getting the drivers to go easy on the tyres as we weren't sure how long we were going to have to take them. The race behind us seemed to be fairly entertaining with Max and the Ferraris and after the penalty and there was a period where we weren't sure whether it would be Seb or Max would presenting the biggest threat. We were able to stay out longer than the other runners and cover off the safety car threat before coming in for the medium with both our cars. The soft seemed like the best tyre, which helped us in the first stint but allowed Max to put Valtteri under a bit of pressure in the final stint, although Valtteri seemed pretty relaxed about it after the race. This has probably been the closest we have come to perfect weekend all year, in terms of reliability, car performance the drivers and how we've worked as a team. We are taking it one race at a time at the moment and just trying to do the best job we can in each weekend so hopefully we can carry this momentum into Austin.
Maurizio Arrivabene: "After what happened in qualifying, today the team and the drivers fought back well. The podium could have been within our grasp, but unfortunately, damage on both cars, as a result of collisions in the race, affected the final result. Regardless of what is now a very difficult situation in terms of the championship, we will tackle the coming races giving them our best shot, maintaining concentration and determination."
Christian Horner, Team Principal: "Today was a good day for both drivers and the Team. For Max to achieve a podium despite incurring a five second penalty following contact with Kimi on the opening lap was a great performance. He had a busy afternoon, with a racing incident between him and Seb on lap seven resulting in damage. Despite that, he was still able to close down Valtteri in the final stages and put him under pressure to try and claim second place and secure his third consecutive Suzuka podium. Daniel also drove a very strong Grand Prix, progressing through the field with some great overtakes and with strong pace he was able to finish fourth from fifteenth on the grid. All round, it has been a positive day getting two cars to the finish and taking home a good haul of points for the Team."
Racing Point Force India scored eight points in today's Japanese Grand Prix with Sergio Perez racing to seventh place ahead of Esteban Ocon in ninth.
Otmar Szafnauer: "I think we made the most of our opportunities this afternoon. We had to fight all the way to the flag to score eight important points. Our strategy required both cars to pull off various overtaking moves to come back through the field, but it worked out well. Sergio made a fantastic move on Grosjean to finish as the ‘best of the rest'. Considering our starting positions, we recovered well today and the team did an excellent job with the strategy calls. We have unlocked some significant performance recently and we just need to keep up this points-scoring momentum in the final few races."
Sergey Sirotkin finished 16th and Lance Stroll 17th in the Japanese Grand Prix. Both cars started the race on the soft Pirelli tyre, with Lance 14th and Sergey 17th. On the opening lap, both cars lost positions, while Lance made contact with Alonso which resulted in both receiving a five-second time penalty - Lance for causing a collision and Alonso for gaining an advantage. The Safety Car was deployed on lap four when Magnussen left debris across the track, prompting Sergey to pit for the medium tyre, with Lance waiting until lap 14. Both cars struggled to make progress during the race, and pitted again for the supersoft tyre, with Sergey coming in on lap 38 and Lance on lap 39.
Paddy Lowe, Chief Technical Officer: A disappointing day. We had the pace and grid positions to beat some cars today, but we didn't manage to do so overall not the result we hoped for. We had good reliability with both cars coming home. Lance received a penalty for an incident at turn 16, and on top of that in his second stint, which needed to be a good, long stint, he flat spotted one of his tyres, so effectively that ruined his opportunity today. On Sergey's side, he lost quite a few places in the opening laps, therefore, we chose to gamble with an earlier stop, but for various reasons that didn't work out, so we had to make a second stop.
Renault Sport Formula One Team returned to the points as Carlos Sainz fought through to finish the Honda Japanese Grand Prix in tenth place at Suzuka. Carlos executed a long first stint - matched with a slick pit-stop - to capitalise on fresh tyres towards the end of the race, before clinching the final point with three laps remaining.
Nico Hulkenberg retired from the race on lap 37 with a rear end issue. The team remain in fourth place in the Constructors' Championship, eight points ahead of their nearest rival.
Nico started from P16 on new Pirelli Medium (white) tyres, pitting on lap 30 for a new set of Soft (yellow) tyres. Carlos started from P13 on new Soft tyres, pitting on lap 32 for a new set of Medium tyres.
Cyril Abiteboul, Team Principal: "Today is an important result for the team. After Sochi, it is further evidence that our race pace is competitive at this stage of our development. We've also shown that the Power Unit is capable of doing great things in race conditions at high-power sensitive circuits, like Suzuka, with Red Bull Racing fighting for second place in these track conditions. Carlos drove strongly throughout and never relented for that final point, whilst Nico unfortunately had to retire. It's clear what needs to be fixed and that's improving our qualifying pace. We've seen that small differences can play a huge role in starting between seventh or fourteenth. We absolutely need to get on top of this and get the car back where it belongs at circuits which should be better for us."
Toyoharu Tanabe (Honda F1 Technical Director): "Today's result was disappointing, given our excellent showing in qualifying yesterday. Pierre ran in the points for much of the race, so it was unfortunate that he was unable to fight off Sainz in the closing stages and dropped down to eleventh. Since we arrived in Suzuka, we have had fantastic support from the Toro Rosso Honda fans, which was a great boost for all of us. So it was a shame that we were unable to repay them with a point or two. However, the frustration we all feel at the lack of points will be turned into motivation as we carry on working for the final four races and, at this point of the year, even looking to 2019."
Haas F1 Team gained three more points on fourth-place Renault in the constructors' standings as driver Romain Grosjean delivered an eighth-place result in the Japanese Grand Prix Sunday at Suzuka Circuit. Teammate Kevin Magnussen finished 20th after a flat left-rear tire at the start of the race damaged his racecar too much to continue.
The American squad remains fifth in the constructors' ranks, but cut the gap to Renault to eight points after Grosjean secured his fifth points-paying drive in this year's FIA Formula One World Championship. Haas F1 Team also extended its advantage over sixth-place McLaren to 26 points.
Grosjean began the 53-lap race around the 5.807-kilometer (3.608-mile), 18-turn track that first opened in 1962 as a testing venue for Honda from fifth in the 20-car field. A clean start allowed Grosjean to hold his position until Sebastian Vettel wheeled his Ferrari around Grosjean at the kink in turn 12, between the hairpin and Spoon corners.
Grosjean returned to the top-five on lap eight when a charging Vettel clashed with the Red Bull of Max Verstappen, sending Vettel into a spin. Fifth place was short-lived, however, as the other Red Bull piloted by Daniel Ricciardo, passed Grosjean for fifth in the turn-16 chicane.
Grosjean continued to pinball between fifth and sixth as Kimi Raikkonen pitted his Ferrari on lap 17, allowing Grosjean to retake fifth. But as soon as Raikkonen emerged from the pit lane, he filled the mirrors of Grosjean's Haas VF-18. Raikkonen eventually passed Grosjean for position on lap 23, sending him back to sixth.
With the Pirelli P Zero Yellow soft tires Grosjean started the race with thoroughly used up, Grosjean pitted on lap 29, switching to a new set of White medium tires that would carry him to the finish. He lost only one spot, emerging from the pit lane and back onto the racetrack just ahead of the Force India of Sergio Perez.
Grosjean retook sixth place when Carlos Sainz Jr. pitted his Renault on lap 32, but in a case of deja vu, it didn't last long as a resurgent Vettel grabbed sixth when the duo entered Spoon, jettisoning Grosjean to seventh.
A brief Virtual Safety Car period came on lap 41, but racing resumed on the following lap, whereupon Perez quickly challenged Grosjean. Perez made his move in the chicane to take seventh. Shortly thereafter, Perez's Force India teammate, Esteban Ocon, was eyeing Grosjean for eighth. Grosjean was able to hold him off to secure Haas F1 Team's 11th points-paying performance of 2018.
The four points earned by Grosjean in the Japanese Grand Prix gave him 31 on the season, the most he has scored in his three years with Haas F1 Team. Grosjean scored all 29 points in the team's inaugural 2016 season and 28 points last year.
Magnussen is eighth in the driver's championship with 53 points and Grosjean is 13th with the aforementioned 31 points.
Only four races remain, with the next event being the United States Grand Prix Oct. 21 at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
Guenther Steiner: "Not the best of our days. The incident with Kevin, where Leclerc ran straight into him, took him out of the race, so we were one car down. Grosjean had a few issues with the car, with the telemetry, and with the handling of it. The car was pulling on the straights. At one point we thought he had a puncture, but luckily we didn't. Then we had the incident with Perez overtaking us at the Virtual Safety Car, which we still need to look into. The good side is we closed the gap to Renault by three points, and I hope we make the rest up in the next four races."
On the high-speed and challenging Suzuka Circuit, Fernando and Stoffel finished line astern in 14th and 15th respectively. Both drivers managed their tyres well which allowed the team to execute a one-stop strategy and jump in front of a couple of cars ahead.
Stoffel had a difficult first stint on his initial set of tyres, but by the final stages of the race was rapidly closing on the pack of four cars ahead, although he ran out of laps to be able to make a move stick.
Fernando made a great start and was up to 15th position by the end of the first lap. He made it as high as 12th before the half-way point, before being handed a five-second pit-stop penalty after an incident with another car. This pushed him down the order to 19th and last position, but he was able to make it way back up to finish 14th after pit-stops.
Gil de Ferran, Sporting Director: "Despite our lowly starting position, Fernando's penalty and the fact that we come away with no points, it's fair to say that today was still positive.
"Stoffel struggled a little in the first stint, but finished quite strongly to elevate himself to the fight immediately ahead.
"Fernando had a brilliant first lap, and strong pace throughout the race, showing his customary inimitable race-craft. We sit here wondering what could have been, nevertheless we go home with a better feeling, given that we genuinely beat cars that started ahead of us. In addition, our race pace once again proved to be stronger than qualifying.
"On a cheerful note, I'm glad the great Japanese fans were rewarded with a very exciting Japanese Grand Prix that was full of overtakes. I can't wait to return to Suzuka in 2019."
Spectators and teams watched a hectic Grand Prix unfold at the epic Suzuka Circuit, with an eventful start of the race making an impact on Charles Leclerc's race outcome. Starting from 10th on the grid, Charles Leclerc made a good start and was fighting his way to gain positions when an incident with Kevin Magnussen on lap two caused damage to his car and compromised his race. Shortly after that, Leclerc came in for an early pitstop during the safety car period where the team changed the nose of his car. He then consistently worked his way into the upper midfield. Unfortunately, a mechanical issue on Charles Leclerc's car saw him retire from the race on lap 39. Marcus Ericsson also had a good start and made a strong recovery from the back of the grid, fighting in the midfield. He crossed the finish line in P12 after delivering a good performance at the 2018 FIA Formula One Japanese Grand Prix.
The Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team looks forward to the next Grand Prix, which will take place in the United States, eager to fight for good results there.
Frederic Vasseur, Team Principal: "It was a tough day. Charles' race was compromised by the incident with Kevin Magnussen. It was a very dangerous move on his part and Charles' car was quite damaged after that. We had to change the nose during the pitstop. He did a good job recovering positions, but in the end, he had to retire from the race because of a mechanical issue. Marcus gave a good performance. Finishing in P12 after starting in P20 is a solid job done and he managed the tyres well. We can see that we have a good pace overall, and look forward to the next opportunity for points in the United States."
Lewis Hamilton led a Mercedes one-two, stopping just once without losing the lead. Both Mercedes adopted the same soft-medium strategy, but behind them there were some different one-stop strategies that completed the top five.
The exception was Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo, who finished fourth using the same soft-medium strategy as the top two, having started 15th due to a problem in qualifying.
Another driver to show plenty of pace was Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel, finishing sixth with a supersoft-soft strategy after dropping towards the back following a racing incident.
With temperatures and energy loads high at the Suzuka circuit, in contrast to the variable weather seen up to today, there were a number of question marks about strategy before the race start. Nonetheless, the majority of drivers were able to stop only once: helped additionally by an early safety car.
Pirelli now remains in Suzuka for a two-day development test with Renault, assessing 2019 prototype tyres on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Mario Isola: "With temperatures being so much warmer than they have been up to now, we knew that there would be some additional challenges at this very demanding track. This was indeed the case, especially in the closing stages of the race, but it did not compromise the action at all, as the many impressive fightbacks showed. Thanks also to an early safety car most drivers were able to make just one stop, and we also saw some very long stints on all three compounds. Many chose to finish the grand prix on the medium - the equivalent of last year's soft - despite the fact that this tyre wasn't used extensively in free practice, and not at all in these warm conditions."
