George Russell eyes critical F1 'test' at Japanese GP

George Russell has indicated the Japanese Grand Prix will be a good “test” for the new F1 regulations after early divisive opinions.

The Suzuka Circuit hosts the third round of the F1 campaign this weekend and is the final round before a month-long break following the cancellation of the events in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

The F1 teams and drivers are still adjusting to the new technical regulations introduced this year, featuring all-new power units with increased electrical output.

Suzuka has long been a favourite track of the drivers due to its technical challenge, but has often struggled to produce races with a high number of overtakes.

But with a major focus on energy harvesting and deployment, and its impact on wheel-to-wheel racing, that could change this year, according to Russell.

“I think this is the argument,” Russell told media including RacingNews365. “The previous generation cars were perfectly suited to a track like Suzuka.

“The cars in the past had a lot of high-speed downforce. The lap times we saw last year were probably the fastest lap times we've ever seen in Suzuka, yet the race was super boring.

“We will be slower through the Esses this year and I think it will probably be an easy one stop, same as last year.

“But it was an easy one-stop in China, and it was a very exciting race, and I guess this will be a good test for the regulations.

“If this track now becomes an exciting race and it was once a boring race, that will be quite interesting.”

Russell expects Japan rule change to 'have an impact'

While opinions have been split over the racing spectacle among the drivers, more common ground has been found over how the new regulations have impacted qualifying.

At the end of long straights, drivers are losing speed due to a drained battery, while lifting and coasting to recover more energy has become a more common tactic.

In an effort to combat this issue, the FIA has reduced the maximum permitted energy recharge per lap during the grid-setting session from 9.0MJ to 8.0MJ.

Predicting how it will influence the upcoming weekend, Russell said: “It will have an impact.

“I don't think it will change things substantially, to be honest. We've all done the preparation so far with the previous rule. 

“We'll just wait and see until tomorrow. But I think it's good that the FIA is looking to make some of these small changes, refining the regulations.

“We're still race three into the season, and it's obviously been very positive for the sport, the racing. Qualifying just needs a bit of work.”