2016 Japanese Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Nico Rosberg strengthened his title challenge with victory at Suzuka, while Mercedes secured another constructors’ championship. Max Verstappen finished second as Lewis Hamilton recovered from a costly start to take third.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Pole time	1:30.647
Fastest lap	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	1:35.118 on lap 36
First	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes
Second	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing
Third	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
7 October 2016	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
7 October 2016	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
8 October 2016	Practice 3	12:00 – 13:00
8 October 2016	Qualifying	15:00
9 October 2016	Race	14:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Nico Rosberg arrived at round 17 leading the 2016 F1 World Championship on 288 points, with Lewis Hamilton on 265. Mercedes headed the constructors’ standings with 553 points.

Race entries

The 11 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Japanese Grand Prix.

Free Practice

Nico Rosberg led FP1 while Fernando Alonso spun into the barrier at Spoon and returned for repairs. Romain Grosjean continued to struggle with braking and ran off at Degner. Teams then shifted towards longer runs on used tyres, making reliable mileage particularly valuable with unsettled weather forecast later in the weekend.

Nico Rosberg narrowly led FP2 as teams made the most of dry conditions before possible rain. Esteban Gutierrez stopped with a turbocharger failure, triggering a virtual safety car that spoiled Red Bull’s quick laps. Kevin Magnussen and Daniil Kvyat also had excursions, while the final part of the session concentrated on longer runs.

Earlier rain left damp patches for FP3, encouraging a cautious start on intermediates before slicks became viable. Repeated running gradually dried the circuit, and late soft-tyre attempts allowed Nico Rosberg to complete a practice clean sweep. The evolving conditions reduced the amount of consistent preparation available before qualifying.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2016 Japanese Grand Prix FP1, 7 October 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:32.431	24
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.215s	21
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+1.094s	19
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.386s	17
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.681s	23
6	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+1.948s	26
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.099s	28
8	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+2.336s	30
9	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+2.572s	10
10	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+2.950s	31
11	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+3.015s	23
12	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+3.241s	27
13	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+3.246s	24
14	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+3.257s	17
15	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+3.536s	15
16	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+3.738s	23
17	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+3.788s	21
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+3.863s	19
19	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+4.391s	30
20	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+5.366s	29
21	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+5.535s	24
22	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+5.561s	13

Free Practice 2 Classification

2016 Japanese Grand Prix FP2, 7 October 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:32.250	35
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+0.072s	35
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.323s	26
4	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.811s	29
5	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.853s	34
6	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.320s	37
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.623s	35
8	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.735s	37
9	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.778s	33
10	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+1.836s	33
11	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.877s	33
12	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+1.900s	29
13	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+1.991s	33
14	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+2.055s	27
15	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+2.089s	36
16	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.148s	29
17	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+2.393s	11
18	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+2.510s	40
19	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.574s	26
20	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+3.042s	30
21	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+3.150s	37
22	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+4.068s	26

Free Practice 3 Classification

2016 Japanese Grand Prix FP3, 8 October 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:32.092	14
2	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	+0.302s	10
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	+0.639s	13
4	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	+0.692s	9
5	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.919s	12
6	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	+1.179s	13
7	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	+1.192s	12
8	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	+1.547s	13
9	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	+1.547s	10
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.554s	11
11	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	+1.622s	12
12	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	+1.695s	16
13	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	+1.773s	9
14	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	+1.829s	11
15	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	+1.945s	12
16	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	+2.180s	13
17	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	+2.296s	12
18	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	+2.452s	13
19	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.456s	11
20	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	+3.138s	13
21	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	+5.164s	10
22	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	+24.231s	3

Qualifying

Nico Rosberg headed qualifying for Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton second and Kimi Räikkönen third.

Nico Rosberg edged Lewis Hamilton for pole. Kimi Räikkönen and Pascal Wehrlein received gearbox penalties, Sebastian Vettel carried a penalty from Malaysia, and Jenson Button was penalised for additional power-unit components.

Qualifying Classification

2016 Japanese Grand Prix Qualifying, 8 October 2016

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:31.858	1:30.714	1:30.647	13
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	1:32.218	1:31.129	1:30.660	13
3	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:31.674	1:31.406	1:30.949	12
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	1:31.659	1:31.227	1:31.028	12
5	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	1:32.487	1:31.489	1:31.178	14
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	1:32.538	1:31.719	1:31.240	14
7	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	1:32.682	1:32.237	1:31.961	12
8	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	1:32.458	1:32.176	1:31.961	17
9	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:32.448	1:32.200	1:32.142	12
10	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Haas	1:32.620	1:32.155	1:32.547	15
11	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	1:32.383	1:32.315	—	11
12	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	1:32.562	1:32.380	—	11
13	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	1:32.645	1:32.623	—	11
14	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	1:32.789	1:32.685	—	12
15	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1:32.819	1:32.689	—	12
16	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	1:32.796	1:32.807	—	12
17	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:32.851	—	—	6
18	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	1:33.023	—	—	6
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	1:33.222	—	—	7
20	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	1:33.332	—	—	7
21	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	1:33.353	—	—	9
22	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	1:33.561	—	—	9

Kimi Räikkönen and Pascal Wehrlein received a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change.

Sebastian Vettel received a three-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable collision at the previous race in Malaysia.

Jenson Button received a thirty-five-place grid penalty for exceeding his quota of power unit components.

What happened in the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix?

Hamilton struggled away from the grid and fell to eighth, leaving Rosberg clear to lead. Verstappen emerged as the closest challenger, while Hamilton began recovering the places lost in the opening seconds.

Rosberg maintained control through the pit stops and traffic. Hamilton’s progress brought him back into the podium contest, but the early deficit left him with Verstappen to overcome before he could challenge his team-mate.

Hamilton closed on the Red Bull late in the race but could not complete a pass. Rosberg won with Verstappen second and Hamilton third, extending his championship advantage to 33 points with four races remaining.

Vettel finished fourth ahead of Räikkönen, with Daniel Ricciardo sixth. Every starter was classified, while the points scored by Rosberg and Hamilton made Mercedes‘ third consecutive constructors’ title mathematically secure.

Further down the points places, Sergio Pérez, Nico Hülkenberg, Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas completed the scoring positions. Sebastian Vettel set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2016 rules.

After the race, Nico Rosberg headed the drivers’ standings with 313 points, followed by Lewis Hamilton on 280. Mercedes led the constructors’ table on 593, with Red Bull Racing on 385.

2016 Japanese Grand Prix race results

The 2016 Japanese Grand Prix was held on 9 October 2016, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	53	1:26:43.333	25
2	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	53	+4.978	18
3	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	53	+5.776	15
4	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	53	+20.269	12
5	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	53	+28.370	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	53	+33.941	8
7	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	53	+57.495	6
8	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	53	+59.177	4
9	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	53	+1:37.763	2
10	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	53	+1:38.323	1
11	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	53	+1:39.254	0
12	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	52	+1 Lap	0
13	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	52	+1 Lap	0
14	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	52	+1 Lap	0
15	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	52	+1 Lap	0
16	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	52	+1 Lap	0
17	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	52	+1 Lap	0
18	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	52	+1 Lap	0
19	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	52	+1 Lap	0
20	21	Esteban Gutiérrez	Haas	52	+1 Lap	0
21	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	52	+1 Lap	0
22	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	52	+1 Lap	0

2016 Japanese Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time of Day	Time	Avg. Speed
1	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	36	15:03:17	1:35.118	219.781
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	36	15:03:16	1:35.152	219.703
3	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	36	15:03:39	1:35.511	218.877
4	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	33	14:58:33	1:35.990	217.785
5	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	31	14:54:59	1:36.049	217.651
6	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	43	15:14:28	1:36.386	216.890
7	11	Sergio Perez	Force India	31	14:55:42	1:36.756	216.061
8	8	Romain Grosjean	Haas	32	14:57:43	1:37.020	215.473
9	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	39	15:09:45	1:37.177	215.124
10	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	39	15:08:44	1:37.351	214.740
11	26	Daniil Kvyat	Toro Rosso	25	14:46:23	1:37.597	214.199
12	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	41	15:12:57	1:37.723	213.923
13	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Haas	30	14:54:51	1:37.775	213.809
14	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	35	15:02:34	1:37.785	213.787
15	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	33	14:59:19	1:37.844	213.658
16	30	Jolyon Palmer	Renault	43	15:15:54	1:37.978	213.366
17	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Manor Racing	39	15:10:16	1:38.000	213.318
18	20	Kevin Magnussen	Renault	27	14:49:42	1:38.036	213.240
19	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	29	14:53:05	1:38.208	212.866
20	31	Esteban Ocon	Manor Racing	33	15:00:02	1:38.380	212.494
21	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	28	14:51:21	1:38.496	212.244
22	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	28	14:51:30	1:38.544	212.140

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded. Time of Day is local.

2016 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix.

2016 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	313
2	Lewis Hamilton	British	Mercedes	280
3	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Red Bull Racing	212
4	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	170
5	Max Verstappen	Dutch	Toro Rosso / Red Bull Racing	165
6	Sebastian Vettel	German	Ferrari	165
7	Valtteri Bottas	Finnish	Williams	81
8	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Force India	80
9	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	54
10	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Williams	43
11	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	McLaren	42
12	Carlos Sainz	Spanish	Toro Rosso	30
13	Romain Grosjean	French	Haas	28
14	Daniil Kvyat	Russian	Red Bull Racing / Toro Rosso	25
15	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	19
16	Kevin Magnussen	Danish	Renault	7
17	Jolyon Palmer	British	Renault	1
18	Pascal Wehrlein	German	Manor Racing	1
19	Stoffel Vandoorne	Belgian	McLaren	1
20	Esteban Gutiérrez	Mexican	Haas	0
21	Marcus Ericsson	Swedish	Sauber	0
22	Felipe Nasr	Brazilian	Sauber	0
23	Rio Haryanto	Indonesian	Manor Racing	0
24	Esteban Ocon	French	Manor Racing	0

2016 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Mercedes	593
2	Red Bull Racing	385
3	Ferrari	335
4	Force India	134
5	Williams	124
6	McLaren	62
7	Toro Rosso	47
8	Haas	28
9	Renault	8
10	Manor Racing	1
11	Sauber	0

2016 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2016 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	20 March
2	2016 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	3 April
3	2016 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	17 April
4	2016 Russian Grand Prix	Sochi Autodrom, Sochi	1 May
5	2016 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Montmeló	15 May
6	2016 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	29 May
7	2016 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	12 June
8	2016 European Grand Prix	Baku City Circuit, Baku	19 June
9	2016 Austrian Grand Prix	Red Bull Ring, Spielberg	3 July
10	2016 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
11	2016 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	24 July
12	2016 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	31 July
13	2016 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	28 August
14	2016 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	4 September
15	2016 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	18 September
16	2016 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	2 October
17	2016 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	9 October
18	2016 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	23 October
19	2016 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	30 October
20	2016 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	13 November
21	2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	27 November