McLaren suffered its first grand prix defeat of the season at Suzuka, as Max Verstappen converted his remarkable pole position into victory.
Verstappen won his fourth Japanese Grand Prix in a row, and it was the first race of the year that McLaren did not win.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri stayed close to the Red Bull driver throughout the race, finishing second and third, respectively.
Despite the fact that the three drivers were separated by only 2.1 seconds, Norris and Piastri never had a chance of passing Verstappen.
Norris was the only driver that had a chance to take the lead after exiting the pits, alongside Verstappen, who also pitted at the end of lap 21.
Rather than yield and follow Verstappen out of the pit lane, Norris raced Verstappen and left all four wheels on the grass at the pit exit, losing time.
Piastri, on the other hand, pitted one lap early but remained in third. After the race, some argued that McLaren’s strategy was overly safe, rather than going for the win.
With low tire degradation, several argued that the Woking-based team should run Norris or Piastri for longer than Verstappen.
Another option McLaren opted against was attempting an undercut with Norris rather than Piastri.
McLaren still extended its lead in the constructors’ title to 36 points, although questions over its strategic thinking have now risen.
