Verstappen and Perez make little impression with long run pace in Japan

The third free practice for the Japanese Grand Prix was extra important this time for all teams. Indeed, the second free practice was useless due to the wet track. The drivers and teams therefore had to make good use of the time in FP3 to test the qualifying and race simulations. During the qualifying simulations, Red Bull was by far the fastest, but in terms of their long run pace, they were less impressive.

What does Verstappen's long runpace look like?

Verstappen drove a seven-lap long run mid-session, averaging a lap time of 1.36.8. His fastest time was a 1.36.5 and otherwise it was noticeable how consistently Verstappen drove. Sergio Perez was just a bit faster on average, also drove a slightly faster lap, but did slump a bit at the end.

The pace, however, does not compare to Ferrari's. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc also drove their long run on the medium tyre, but averaged more than half a second per lap faster than the Red Bull duo. Given the pace over one lap, that can be called remarkable.

What is noticeable is that Ferrari start with much faster times than Verstappen and Perez. Leclerc and Sainz both drive laps in the 1.35s. After that, however, their pace drops back quickly. Sainz still manages to keep it somewhat flat, but Leclerc suffers more of a setback.

Mercedes seem to be closer to Red Bull Racing in the short runs and also show good race pace. George Russell's long run was particularly impressive. The Briton drove the long run at the beginning of the session, also on a medium tyre. With an average lap time of 1.35.2, he is more than a second faster than Verstappen and Perez. Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll also showed good pace in the Aston Martin and did so on the hard tyres.

Should Verstappen be worried?

Whereas the long run space is normally the moment that really shows how good the Red Bull are, that did not seem to be the case in FP3. The cause seems obvious: lots of fuel and/or a lower engine mode set up for the car. It would otherwise be quite remarkable that Verstappen is so clearly the fastest over one lap, but loses out in the long run. On the contrary, the RB20 is normally stronger in the race than qualifying.

Above all, Verstappen's consistency indicates a good tyre management with a fueled up car. Where all competitors might drive faster laps, they drive much slower times entering the end of the run. With his full tank on lap one, Verstappen drives almost the same time as in his last laps. So he doesn't seem to have much to worry about.