{"id":32403,"date":"2025-04-04T16:23:36","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T20:23:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=32403"},"modified":"2025-04-04T16:30:14","modified_gmt":"2025-04-04T20:30:14","slug":"mercedes-chase-mclaren-as-red-bull-face-oversteer-and-oversteer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2025\/04\/04\/mercedes-chase-mclaren-as-red-bull-face-oversteer-and-oversteer\/","title":{"rendered":"Mercedes chase McLaren as Red Bull face oversteer and oversteer"},"content":{"rendered":"

McLaren picked up where they left off with a strong showing across Friday practice in Japan. The MCL39 was fastest in both qualifying and race trim, with a notable – though not staggering – gap to the rest of field.<\/p>\n

Further behind, it was the Mercedes of George Russell that presented the biggest threat to the McLaren duo.<\/p>\n

Both in terms of consistency and peak performance, the W16 once again proved a well-rounded and consistent machine<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Red Bull’s RB21 continues to expose itself as a car with fundamental issues – which could be difficult to address.<\/p>\n

McLaren with a cushion against the rest<\/h2>\n

To some extent, the threat of Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull should keep McLaren on their toes in 2025.<\/p>\n

However, Andrea Stella’s team have enough of an advantage over their rivals – roughly three tenths – to maintain a decisive edge.<\/p>\n

Provided that Norris and Piastri put their laps together, they should put themselves in Pole Position.<\/p>\n

Race simulations were very limited, due to the four red flags in FP2, but the evidence so far suggests McLaren are stronger in race trim than in qualifying.<\/p>\n

Tyre degradation in Suzuka has also been less extreme than anticipated, with a one-stop strategy likely if Sunday is dry.<\/p>\n

Then again, wet conditions for the Grand Prix could throw a spanner in the works for the Woking squad.<\/p>\n

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Lando Norris in Suzuka, Japan. (Photo by Andy Hone\/LAT Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Regardless of the conditions, George Russell and Kimi Antonelli should be firmly in contention for the podium.<\/p>\n

Mercedes are faster than both Ferrari and Red Bull, whilst also benefiting from similarly strong performance in low, medium and high-speed corners.<\/p>\n

Speaking of Ferrari<\/a>, the SF-25 has more potential than the final lap-times of FP2 showed.<\/p>\n

Whilst still a slightly tricky car, the SF-25 should be a threat in qualifying – though their ultimate pace might not be enough to displace Mercedes.<\/p>\n

The greater concern for Ferrari is race day, with improved balance and tyre management two key areas to address.<\/p>\n

Speaking post-session, Charles Leclerc said he experimented with set-up in FP1 and FP2 – which he believes provided some clarity for how to optimise the car moving forward.<\/p>\n

Concern at Red Bull<\/h4>\n

Red Bull are still a few steps away from McLaren<\/a>, as they were in the first two rounds.<\/p>\n

Yuki Tsunoda already looks more competitive than either Lawson or Perez – though the RB21 is arguably the worst car produced at Milton Keynes in half a decade.<\/p>\n

This will make securing a good points haul difficult, regardless of the gap to Verstappen.<\/p>\n

Red Bull, should they put everything together, can aim to battle Ferrari and Mercedes this weekend.<\/p>\n

However, some worrying trends emerging for the Austrian team – that could prevent them from unlocking the RB21’s potential.<\/p>\n

Fundamentally, there is a discrepancy between the Red Bull simulator and how the car behaves on track.<\/p>\n

This is something Tsunoda mentioned immediately after completing FP2<\/a>, and explains why the Austrian team’s baseline set-up is off the mark.<\/p>\n

Red Bull are consistently entering race weekends on the defensive, having to make adjustments to compensate for a poor baseline.<\/p>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>