The 2016 Japanese Grand Prix (formally known as the 2016 Formula 1 Emirates Japanese Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race that was held on 9 October 2016 at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, Mie, Japan. The race marked the 42nd running of the Japanese Grand Prix, the 30th time it has been held at Suzuka (28th time as a World Championship round), and the 32nd time that the race has been run as a World Championship event since the inaugural Formula One season in .
Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg entered the round with a twenty-three-point lead over teammate Lewis Hamilton in the World Drivers' Championship. Rosberg started the race from pole position and won the race, extending his championship lead to thirty-three points as Hamilton finished third behind Max Verstappen. Before the race, Mercedes held a 194-point lead over Red Bull Racing in the World Constructors' Championship, and with forty points for first and third places, secured their third consecutive title. In the Drivers' Championship, the field of title contenders narrowed to just two (Rosberg and Hamilton) after the race. This was Rosberg's 30th and final pole in Formula One as well as his 23rd and final Formula One victory.
Report Background Sebastian Vettel entered the race with a three-place grid penalty for his role in causing an avoidable collision on the opening lap of the previous race.
Race Lewis Hamilton fell to 8th at the start of the race due to a bad start which was compounded by being on the wetter side of the grid. For the second year in succession in the Japanese Grand Prix, all entrants were classified as having finished the race.
After the race, Nico Rosberg had enough lead in the World Drivers' Championship to win the title, even if Hamilton won all the remaining four races and he finished in second place every time - with this scenario happening, Rosberg won the title with a narrow five point lead (385 points, compared to Hamilton's 380).
Classification
Qualifying DriverConstructorQ1Q2Q316Mercedes1:31.8581:30.7141:30.6471244Mercedes1:32.2181:31.1291:30.660237Ferrari1:31.6741:31.4061:30.949845Ferrari1:31.6591:31.2271:31.02865331:32.4871:31.4891:31.178363Red Bull Racing-TAG Heuer1:32.5381:31.7191:31.24047111:32.6821:32.2371:31.961588Haas-Ferrari1:32.4581:32.1761:31.96179271:32.4481:32.2001:32.14291021Haas-Ferrari1:32.6201:32.1551:32.547101177Williams-Mercedes1:32.3831:32.315111219Williams-Mercedes1:32.5621:32.380121326Toro Rosso-Ferrari1:32.6451:32.623131455Toro Rosso-Ferrari1:32.7891:32.685141514McLaren-Honda1:32.8191:32.689151630Renault1:32.7961:32.807161722McLaren-Honda1:32.851221820Renault1:33.02317199Sauber-Ferrari1:33.222182012Sauber-Ferrari1:33.332192131MRT-Mercedes1:33.353202294MRT-Mercedes1:33.56121107% time: 1:38.075Source:
Notes – Kimi Räikkönen and Pascal Wehrlein received a five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change. – Sebastian Vettel received a three-place grid penalty for causing an avoidable collision at the previous race in Malaysia. – Jenson Button received a thirty-five-place grid penalty for exceeding his quota of power unit components.
Race DriverConstructorLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints16 Nico RosbergMercedes531:26:43.333 125233 Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing-TAG Heuer53 +4.978 318344 Lewis HamiltonMercedes53 +5.77621545 Sebastian VettelFerrari53 +20.269 61257 Kimi RäikkönenFerrari53 +28.37081063 Daniel Ricciardo53 +33.94148711 Sergio PérezForce India-Mercedes53 +57.49556827 Nico HülkenbergForce India-Mercedes53 +59.17794919 Felipe MassaWilliams-Mercedes53 +1:37.7631221077 Valtteri BottasWilliams-Mercedes53 +1:38.323111118 Romain GrosjeanHaas-Ferrari53 +1:39.25471230 Jolyon PalmerRenault52 +1 Lap161326 Daniil KvyatToro Rosso-Ferrari52 +1 Lap131420 Kevin MagnussenRenault52 +1 Lap17159 Marcus EricssonSauber-Ferrari52 +1 Lap181614 Fernando AlonsoMcLaren-Honda52 +1 Lap151755 Carlos Sainz Jr.Toro Rosso-Ferrari52 +1 Lap141822 Jenson ButtonMcLaren-Honda52 +1 Lap221912 Felipe NasrSauber-Ferrari52 +1 Lap192021Haas-Ferrari52 +1 Lap102131 Esteban OconMRT-Mercedes52 +1 Lap202294 Pascal WehrleinMRT-Mercedes52 +1 Lap21Source:
Championship standings after the race Bold text and an asterisk indicates who still had a theoretical chance of becoming World Champion.
Drivers' Championship standings Driver Points 1 Nico Rosberg* 313 2 Lewis Hamilton* 280 3 212 4 Kimi Räikkönen 170 1 5 Max Verstappen 165Source:
Constructors' Championship standings Constructor Points 1 Mercedes 593 2 385 3 Ferrari 335 4 Force India-Mercedes 134 5 Williams-Mercedes 124Source:
Note: Only the top five positions are included for the sets of standings. Bold text indicates the 2016 World Constructors' Champions. Competitors in bold and marked with an asterisk still had a mathematical chance of becoming World Champion.
References
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