As Japan becomes the 11th nation to have hosted 40 World Championship events, Ferrari could record their first consecutive 1-2 results in 20 years and Verstappen could equal his longest pole streak. Here are the milestones and the records which could be broken at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix!
THE 2024 JAPANESE GRAND PRIX MILESTONES
The 2024 Japanese Grand Prix will be the 1,105th World Championship event in Formula 1 history.
This will be the 40th time that Formula 1 has raced in Japan. Japan becomes the 11th nation which has hosted 40 or more World Championship events.
The 2024 Japanese Grand Prix will be the 48th Japanese Grand Prix since the event was first held in 1963 and the 38th time that the event has been held as a round of the World Championship. It will be the 34th Japanese Grand Prix held at Suzuka in World Championship history.
The Japanese Grand Prix moves to a much earlier slot on the 2024 calendar. This will be the first time F1 has raced at Suzuka in a month other than September, October or November. It is the earliest date in the year on which F1 has raced in Japan – though the sport has visited Japan in April once before, for the Pacific Grand Prix in 1994.
The 2024 Japanese Grand Prix will be McLaren’s 950th Grand Prix appearance.
Lando Norris makes his 108th start with McLaren this weekend, overtaking Alain Prost as the driver to have made the fifth-most starts with the team.
Valtteri Bottas is set to make his 188th consecutive Grand Prix start at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix. That will see him overtake Riccardo Patrese for fifth in the list of most consecutive F1 races started.
The 2024 Japanese Grand Prix will be the fourth F1 race to take place on April 7, after the 1984 South African Grand Prix, the 1985 Brazilian Grand Prix and the 1996 Argentine Grand Prix.
BACK ON TRACK FOR VERSTAPPEN?
Max Verstappen has taken pole at the last four races. If he takes pole position again at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he will equal the longest pole streak of his career having previously secured five in a row between the 2023 Monaco and British Grands Prix. It would be the 25th time that a driver has secured five or more consecutive poles in F1.
A front row start for Max Verstappen would mark a seventh consecutive front row start for the Dutchman. It would be a new personal best for the longest front row starting streak in his career
If Max Verstappen leads every lap of the race, he will overtake Jim Clark for fourth in the list of most races led from start to end. It would be the 14th time he has done so in his career.
Victory for Max Verstappen would see the Netherlands equal Finland as the nation to have won the fifth most races in Formula 1. Finland have won 57 Grands Prix to date in F1, while Verstappen has secured all 57 of the Netherlands’ victories.
If Max Verstappen leads 39 laps of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he will become the fourth driver to have led 3,000 Grand Prix laps in Formula 1.
Max Verstappen has led at least one lap in all of the last ten Grands Prix. Should he lead a lap again at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, it would be the 13th time that a driver has led laps in 11 consecutive Grands Prix.
A win from pole position for Max Verstappen would mark the 30th time that Verstappen has won a Grand Prix from pole. That would see him overtake Ayrton Senna for fourth on the list of most wins from pole.
If Max Verstappen fails to win the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, it would be the first time since the 2022 British and Austrian Grands Prix that he has failed to win two consecutive Grands Prix.
FERRARI ON A ROLL?
If Ferrari record another 1-2 result at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, it would mark their first 1-2 results in consecutive races in almost 20 years, since the 2004 Canadian and United States Grands Prix.
Charles Leclerc has secured the fastest lap at each of the last two races. Should he secure the fastest lap again at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, it would be the 35th time that a driver has taken a streak of three or more fastest laps. It would be the second time that Leclerc has secured three consecutive fastest laps in his career, after the 2022 Bahrain, Saudi Arabian and Australian Grands Prix.
Pole position for a Ferrari driver would mark the 250th pole position for a Ferrari car in Formula 1 history.
CAN LECLERC CONVERT A POLE TO A WIN?
A pole position for Charles Leclerc would see him overtake Niki Lauda as the driver to have taken the second-most pole positions with Ferrari. Only Michael Schumacher has taken more poles at Ferrari than Lauda and Leclerc.
Charles Leclerc has failed to convert all of his last 12 pole positions into wins. Should he take pole and fail to win again this weekend, he would equal the record for most successive poles without a win. Rene Arnoux currently holds the record, having failed to convert any of the first 13 poles of his career into victories.
If Charles Leclerc takes pole position and fails to win, it would be the 20th time that he has done so in his Formula 1 career. That would see him overtake Nelson Piquet for fifth in the list of most failed pole to win conversions.
THE FORMULA 1 RECORDS TO BREAK
At the 2023 Belgian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen joined Fernando Alonso as only the second driver to have won races from nine different grid positions. Either driver could become the first to win from ten different grid positions, while Lewis Hamilton could equal the existing record.
A points finish for a French driver would make 2024 the 70th season in which a French driver has scored. Only two other nations have scored points in 70 seasons: Britain and Germany.
A 1-2 finish for Mercedes would make them the second team, after Ferrari, to record 60 1-2 finishes in Formula 1. Ferrari reached the milestone at the 2002 United States Grand Prix.
If he crosses the finish line, this will be the 200th Grand Prix which Valtteri Bottas has finished in his career. He will become the 11th driver to have finished 200 Formula 1 races.
A points finish for Logan Sargeant would make the United States the 12th country to score 1,000 points in World Championship history.
A front row start for Oscar Piastri would make this the 100th Grand Prix at which an Australian driver has lined up on the front row of the grid.
If Yuki Tsunoda were to win the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he would become the first driver to take his maiden Grand Prix victory at his home event since Johnny Herbert at the 1995 British Grand Prix.
If both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll reach Q3 in qualifying for the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, the Silverstone-based team will reach 250 Q3 appearances (under all their guises, from Midland to Aston Martin) since the knockout system was introduced in 2006.
Should Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo score 37 points between them, Australia will become the seventh nation to have scored 3,000 points in Formula 1.
Spain could overtake Brazil as the nation to have scored the fifth most points in F1. They will do so if Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz score 34 points between them.
THE JAPANESE GRAND PRIX RECORDS TO BREAK
Michael Schumacher’s record of six Suzuka victories cannot be equalled at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix. However, Lewis Hamilton could become only the second driver to take five victories at Suzuka, while Max Verstappen could become the fourth to record three wins at the venue.
While Michael Schumacher’s Suzuka win record cannot be equalled, his record of six Japanese Grand Prix victories could be equalled. Lewis Hamilton has won the Japanese Grand Prix five times to date, four times at Suzuka and once at Fuji Speedway.
Max Verstappen could become only the second driver – after Michael Schumacher in 2000, 2001 and 2002 – to take victory at Suzuka in three consecutive years.
Ferrari and McLaren are currently tied for the most wins at Suzuka, with seven apiece. Either team could set a new outright record, while Mercedes could equal the existing record with victory at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix.
Mercedes have powered the most wins at Suzuka – though Renault could equal their record of ten wins this weekend.
A top three finish for Lewis Hamilton would be his ninth Japanese Grand Prix podium result, which would equal Michael Schumacher for the most top three finishes at the event.
A Fastest Lap for Lewis Hamilton at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix would see him equal Michael Schumacher’s record of four Fastest Laps at Suzuka. It would also see him overtake Schumacher’s record tally of four Fastest Laps at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Williams hold the record for most Fastest Laps for a team at Suzuka. Their record of eight could be equalled this weekend by McLaren.
If Lewis Hamilton leads 19 laps of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he will become only the second driver – after Michael Schumacher – to have led 200 laps at Suzuka. Eight laps led will see Hamilton overtake Sebastian Vettel for second in the list.
McLaren or Ferrari could become the first team to lead 400 laps at Suzuka during the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix. McLaren need to lead 13 laps to do so, while Ferrari need to lead 20 laps.
If Fernando Alonso completes every lap of the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he will move from fifth to second on the list of most laps raced at Suzuka, behind only Michael Schumacher.
Should Fernando Alonso cross the finish line at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, he will equal Jenson Button’s record of 15 finishes at the Suzuka circuit.
A top ten finish would see Lewis Hamilton score points at Suzuka for the 13th time, equalling Michael Schumacher’s record for the most points-scoring appearances at the track and equalling Schumacher and Jenson Button for the most top ten finishes here.
A second place finish for Max Verstappen would see him equal Michael Schumacher’s record of three runner-up finishes at Suzuka, while a third place finish for Lewis Hamilton would see him equal David Coulthard’s record of four third place results at the track.
Oscar Piastri will want to remain in a group of just four drivers who’ve scored points on every appearance at Suzuka. The other driver to have done so are Stefan Johansson, Cristiano Da Matta and Nicholas Latifi. All three made only a single appearance at the track.
A first lap retirement for Carlos Sainz would make him the first driver to record as many as three first lap DNFs at Suzuka. He currently shares the record for most first lap DNFs at the venue with Jean Alesi.
2024 JAPANESE GRAND PRIX: QUALIFYING RECORDS
Renault and Ferrari are currently tied as the engine manufacturers with the most pole positions at Suzuka. Either manufacturer could set a new record in qualifying for the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri will be hoping to maintain their 100% Q3 appearance rates at Suzuka.
Carlos Sainz, Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg currently share the record for most Q2 eliminations at Suzuka, with four each. Any of those drivers could record a record fifth Q2 exit at the 2024 Japanese Grand Prix, while Sergio Perez, Fernando Alonso, Valtteri Bottas or Kevin Magnussen could equal the existing record.
LONGEVITY RECORDS FOR HAMILTON AND ALONSO
A victory for Lewis Hamilton at any race in 2024 would see him overtake Michael Schumacher as the driver to have won at least one race in the most Formula 1 seasons. Both Schumacher and Hamilton have won races in 15 different Formula 1 seasons.
A podium finish for Lewis Hamilton at any race in 2024 would make him the third oldest British driver to finish on the Formula 1 podium. He currently sits fourth in the list, behind Nigel Mansell, Graham Hill and Reg Parnell.
A Fastest Lap for Lewis Hamilton would make him the first driver to have set a Fastest Lap in 17 Formula 1 seasons. A Fastest Lap would also see Hamilton equal Schumacher’s record for most consecutive seasons in which a driver has set the Fastest Lap in a Grand Prix. Schumacher set at least one Fastest Lap in all 15 seasons between 1992 and 2006, while Hamilton has set a Fastest Lap every year since 2010.
A Fastest Lap for Lewis Hamilton would see him set a new record for most Fastest Laps with a single team. He is currently tied with Michael Schumacher, having set 53 Fastest Laps with Mercedes. Schumacher took 53 Fastest Laps with Ferrari during his tenure at the team.
A win for Fernando Alonso at any Grand Prix in 2024 would make him the oldest driver to win a Grand Prix since Jack Brabham at the 1970 South African Grand Prix.
A podium finish for Fernando Alonso would see him overtake Alain Prost as the driver to have taken the fourth-most podiums in Formula 1 history.
A podium finish for Fernando Alonso would make him the third driver – after Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton – to record podium finishes in 15 different Formula 1 seasons.
Pole position at any race for Fernando Alonso in 2024 would make him the oldest polesitter since Jack Brabham at the 1970 Spanish Grand Prix.
If Fernando Alonso leads a lap of any race in 2024, he would become the first driver to have led Formula 1 races over a period longer than 20 years. Alonso first led a Grand Prix in Malaysia in 2003. He most recently led at the 2023 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, just a week short of the 20th anniversary of him leading a lap for the first time in Formula 1.