Mercedes emerged from Friday at Suzuka with encouraging signs, but also with the understanding that more work will be needed to genuinely challenge for pole position. After setting the pace in FP1 with George Russell leading and Kimi Antonelli immediately behind, the Brackley team saw McLaren respond in FP2, with Oscar Piastri breaking the Silver Arrows’ initial dominance to end the day fastest.
However, the overall picture is more nuanced than the raw times suggest. Mercedes completed its planned program, collected data on all three tire compounds, and confirmed a solid baseline on both single-lap pace and long runs. Antonelli finished FP2 in second place with a 1’30”225, less than a tenth off Piastri’s top time, while Russell ended third in 1’30”338 after setting the fastest time in FP1. These results underline the competitiveness of the W17, even in a session complicated by traffic and changing conditions.
Mercedes, Antonelli: “Positive Friday, but McLaren is very quick”
Antonelli described the day as positive, while acknowledging there is still room for improvement: “We had a decent Friday here at Suzuka. We completed our full program and managed to gather data on all three tire compounds. We’re happy with what we achieved, but there’s still work to do.” He also pointed out the main reference for the moment: “McLaren, in particular, seemed very quick, and several other cars are not too far behind.”
The key for Mercedes is that the W17 feels strong, but not yet perfectly dialed in. “The W17 gives good feedback, but with the variable wind and cooler tires it was tricky to put together a perfect lap,” Antonelli explained. “Improving the overall balance will be one of our overnight goals, and if we succeed, we can hope to be in the fight for pole position on Saturday. That could be crucial here, given how difficult overtaking usually is.”
These words capture Mercedes’ Friday at Suzuka: a fast, competitive car, but still not perfectly refined in the details. On a track like Suzuka, where laps need to be built with surgical precision and overtaking is historically challenging, those details can make a huge difference.
Russell: “Surprised by McLaren, we need better single-lap pace”
On the other side of the garage, George Russell focused on the technical aspects and the unique demands of the Japanese track with these new cars. “It’s great to be back at Suzuka: it’s an incredible circuit and always challenging to drive,” the British driver said. “There’s been a lot of discussion about how these new cars would behave here and their relative competitiveness.” Mercedes largely confirmed expectations, though some limits remain in certain parts of the lap: “There are a couple of areas where our single-lap pace is slightly slower in corner entry, but the ‘esses’ remain very demanding and the speeds we’re hitting mid-back straight are among the highest we’ve ever seen. It was really impressive to watch.”
Russell still rated the Friday session positively, but with caution. “Overall, it was a decent Friday,” he said. “It was a bit surprising to see McLaren’s pace, but there’s no reason to think it isn’t real. Clearly, we have work to do overnight to find more performance if we want to challenge them tomorrow.” This is significant, as it confirms that Mercedes’ main Friday benchmark isn’t Ferrari, which looked more troubled, but McLaren and Piastri. “Fortunately, there are several areas we can improve, and we hope to do so overnight. We’ll truly see where we stand in qualifying.”
Energy management and “bi-phase” wing: Mercedes’ focus in Japan
Looking at lap performance, Mercedes showed an effective setup, particularly in the high-speed sections and on the straight leading to the 130R, where Antonelli was especially competitive, even in the super clipping zones. In the third sector, the Italian recovered significant ground on both McLaren and Ferrari. At the same time, however, the Brackley car seemed more vulnerable exiting the final chicane and in the initial acceleration zone, where McLaren built a notable portion of its advantage.
Andrew Shovlin, Mercedes’ trackside director, confirmed that overnight work will also focus on energy management. “We had a fairly straightforward first day here at Suzuka. The car was reliable, and we were able to complete our planned work,” he said. Then he added a key point for Saturday: “This track is quite demanding in terms of energy, especially on a single lap. We were losing a bit of time exiting the final chicane, and that’s something we’ll try to improve for tomorrow.”
Off-track concerns: Mercedes wing controversy clarified
Off-track, the Japanese GP weekend was also stirred by the Mercedes front wing issue, following the double-movement observation in China. FIA technical director Nick Tombazis calmed the debate, stating the situation was not equivalent to an intentional performance-seeking irregularity. “The Mercedes wing had no performance effect and was not a deliberately designed mechanism,” he explained. “It was a mechanical issue, similar to ones other teams have experienced.” He emphasized that the attention the case received was overblown: “There was some agitation, but it didn’t deserve all that focus.” This clarification relieves political pressure on Brackley, allowing Mercedes to concentrate fully on track performance.
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