Sammi's Race 3 & Race 4 Rundown

Race 3 and 4: Suzuka and Bahrain

I decided to do my rundowns for race 3 and 4 together as race 3 (Japanese Grand Prix) was rather uneventful.  In Suzuka there were no DNFs, and mostly the positions stayed the same. Race 4 (Bahrain Grand Prix) somewhat made up from the calmness of the prior race.  While there was only one DNF, there were multiple penalties and some chaos.

Race 3:

Max Verstappen started the race from pole, but prior to the race he broke a track record in quali.  Lando Norris started in P2.

Important Moments:

At the start of the race and for lap 1, all of the top 10 kept their positions.  This is most likely due to the fact that the Suzuka Circuit does not have many options/moments for overtaking. 

There were a few dramatic moments in this otherwise calm race.  We will start with the triple pit stop.  Verstappen, Norris and Lerclerc all pitted AT THE SAME TIME.  

Then we go to the most dramatic moment of the race, Norris and Verstappen almost collided on pit exit and Lando went into the grass.  But as many viewers of this race now know, Lando just thought that the grass needed to be cut and his car is basically a very expensive lawnmower. 

One of my favorite moments of this race was the fact that Kimi Antonelli led the race from lap 23 to about lap 31 or 32.  

Yuki Tsunoda got DOTD.  I feel like this was special for him as it was his debut race with Red Bull Racing and it was his home race.

Positions:

The podium positions for this race were as follows: Max Verstappen P1, Lando Norris P2, and Oscar Piastri P3.  I absolutely loved this podium - three of my favorite drivers.  

Now on Race 4:

The Bahrain Grand Prix was no doubt, less calm than the Japanese Grand Prix, with a multitude of penalties.  Oscar Piastri started on Pole for this race - his 50th Grand Prix start - and retained his position for the duration of the race.  

Important Moments:

I am going to start with Lando’s start, he started P6 and moved to P3 at the start of the race but then got a 5 sec penalty for his front tires being over the lines at the start.  When Lando pitted he served his penalty and when he came back out, he had dropped down to 15th.  

Let’s talk about everyone who got a black and white flag for track limits.  While it is not technically a penalty, it is a warning of one.  Isack Hadjar, Jack Doohan, Lando Norris, Yuki Tsunoda.  I believe there were a few more but I got tired of keeping track of all the black and white flags.

There was a safety car that started on lap 32.  I was confused for a good few minutes about why there was a safety car until I saw that they were clearing debris from a slight collision.

Liam Lawson got 2 separate penalties for causing collisions.  A 5 second penalty and a 10 second penalty.

Carlos Sainz got a 10 second penalty for forcing a driver off the track.  Sainz then retired in lap 47.  

Throughout the race Red Bull was ensnared in pit stop chaos.  They were having trouble with their lights that cleared them for leaving the pit.  The lights were just not working.  

Nico Hülkenberg was later DSQ for excessive plank wear.

Podium Positions:

Oscar Piastri finished the race P1, George Russell finished P2, and Lando Norris finished P3.  Oscar Piastri is the first driver to win more than one race this season.    

George Russell is definitely a surprise this season, he is a driver I did not expect to be in the top 4 standings this early, being only 6 points behind Max Verstappen.  He has really been sneaking his way onto podiums.  George and Kimi are really making a good showing for Mercedes this season so far.  Kimi Antonelli is surely the stand out rookie as well.  

I am looking forward to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this week.  I wonder what this type of race we will have this week.     

2025 Driver Line-Up Graphic - created by S.Matteucci