Race Facts – Japanese Grand Prix

The Suzuka circuit has been home to the Japanese Grand Prix for all but two years since 1987. Its unique ‘figure of 8’ layout, which includes the fearsome 130R corner, has been host to many memorable F1 moments over the years, including several championship deciders. The 2020 race takes place on October 8-11.

The Japanese Grand Prix has been staged over 40 times, though not all races have been part of the Formula 1 World Championship. A record 13 championships have been decided in Japan, largely due to the race having a late-season calendar slot for much of its existence. The first (non-championship) race was held on the Suzuka Circuit in 1963, shortly after the circuit had been built by Honda. Over the years, the race has been shared by Suzuka and the Fuji Circuit, owned by Toyota. It was in Fuji that Japan first hosted a round of the F1 world championship in 1976. The race was run under atrocious wet conditions, as depicted in the film Rush. James Hunt finished third and was crowned world champion over his title rival Niki Lauda, who refused to risk his life in the treacherous conditions.

Suzuka’s Memorable Moments

• 1989: Senna and Prost collide: The events of the 1988 Japanese Grand Prix are still argued about today. Did Alain Prost deliberately crash into Ayrton Senna? Was Senna wrong to have tried such a bold move? Whatever your opinion, the title-deciding crash between the McLaren pair goes down as one of the most controversial moments in F1 history. Prost was eliminated on the spot, while Senna was able to keep going – but was later disqualified from proceedings for the manner in which he re-joined the track. All of this led to Prost sealing his third World Championship, while Alessandro Nannini celebrated the sole victory of his F1 career.
• 1990: The first lap collision: One year later, the title was once again decided between Senna and Prost in controversial circumstances. Senna had secured pole position for the event, but was unhappy with the side of the grid which he started on. As many had expected, Prost got the better start in his Ferrari. Senna had already vowed that he would attempt to maintain the lead at Turn 1, regardless of the consequences, and there was an air of inevitability when the pair collided. For a second year in succession a crash had determined the outcome of the Drivers’ Championship – but this year it had done so in Senna’s favour.
• 2000: Schumacher’s first Ferrari title: There were celebrations for Michael Schumacher at the 2000 Japanese Grand Prix as he clinched his third World Championship win – and his first of five with Ferrari. Schumacher was the first Ferrari driver to win the title with the team since Jody Scheckter in 1979. The race weekend is also remembered for a titanic qualifying battle between Schumacher and title rival Mika Hakkinen.
• 2005: Raikkonen wins from 17^th: What was arguably the greatest drive of Kimi Raikkonen’s career came at the 2005 Japanese Grand Prix. Qualifying resulted in a mixed up grid, with Raikkonen starting only 17^th for McLaren. Ralf Schumacher led from pole but was overtaken by Giancarlo Fisichella twelve laps in. Raikkonen forced his way through the field over the race distance, and found himself in a position to challenge the Renault driver in the closing stages. On the final lap, Raikkonen overtook Fisichella with an audacious move at Turn 1 and went on to take his most remarkable victory.