At a press conference before the Japanese Grand Prix, [[Honda]] announced the acquisition of all shares in [[British American Racing]] (BAR). Toyota decided to bring the updated [[Toyota TF105|TF105B]] to the last two races of the season.
At a press conference before the Japanese Grand Prix, [[Honda]] announced the acquisition of all shares in [[British American Racing]] (BAR). Toyota decided to bring the updated [[Toyota TF105|TF105B]] to the last two races of the season.
[[Antônio Pizzonia]] was confirmed as continuing to deputise for the injured [[Nick Heidfeld]] for the races in Japan and China. Heidfeld initially missed the [[2005 Italian Grand Prix|Italian]] and [[2005 Belgian Grand Prix|Belgian]] Grands Prix due to injuries suffered in a testing accident. He was due to return in Brazil, but was injured again when hit by a motorcycle while cycling and therefore forced to sit out the rest of the season.
[[ ]] confirmed as continuing to deputise for the injured [[Nick Heidfeld]] for the races in Japan and China. Heidfeld initially missed the [[2005 Italian Grand Prix|Italian]] and [[2005 Belgian Grand Prix|Belgian]] Grands Prix due to injuries suffered in a testing accident. He was due to return in Brazil, but was injured again when hit by a motorcycle while cycling and therefore forced to sit out the rest of the season.
== Practice ==
== Practice ==
Motor car race
The 2005 Japanese Grand Prix (formally the 2005 Formula 1 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 9 October 2005 at Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, Mie. It was the 18th and penultimate round of the 2005 Formula One World Championship, the 31st running of the Japanese Grand Prix and 19th to be held at Suzuka. McLaren driver Kimi Räikkönen won the 53-lap race. The Renaults of Giancarlo Fisichella and Fernando Alonso were second and third. It was Räikkönen’s seventh win of the season and ninth of his Formula One career.
Alonso clinched his first World Drivers’ Championship at the previous round in Brazil, but the battle for the Constructors’ Championship between McLaren-Mercedes and Renault continued, with McLaren leading by two points.
Starting from 17th on the grid, Räikkönen made his way through the field, overtaking Fisichella into turn one on the final lap. The race is perhaps best remembered for Fernando Alonso’s overtake on Ferrari‘s Michael Schumacher around the outside of 130R corner, which is taken in excess of 200 mph.
This was Räikkönen’s last win for McLaren and the last time that a driver would win from 17th or lower on the grid until Max Verstappen at the 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix. The race also marked Ralf Schumacher‘s sixth and final pole position in Formula One.
At a press conference before the Japanese Grand Prix, Honda announced the acquisition of all shares in British American Racing (BAR). Toyota decided to bring the updated TF105B to the last two races of the season.
Williams–BMW confirmed Antônio Pizzonia as continuing to deputise for the injured Nick Heidfeld for the races in Japan and China. Heidfeld initially missed the Italian and Belgian Grands Prix due to injuries suffered in a testing accident. He was due to return in Brazil, but was injured again when hit by a motorcycle while cycling and therefore forced to sit out the rest of the season.
McLaren‘s Pedro de la Rosa was fastest in the first free practice session, completing 23 laps and finished more than half-a-second ahead of Toyota driver Ricardo Zonta, who was more than a second clear of Michael Schumacher of Ferrari in FP2. The weather took a turn for the worse on Saturday and had an effect on the amount of running in the final two practice sessions. Michael Schumacher ended up top of the timesheets in FP3, over two seconds quicker than the McLaren of Kimi Räikkönen, with Renault’s Giancarlo Fisichella clocking the fastest time in final practice, edging out Jordan driver Narain Karthikeyan by 0.014s.
Teams that finished 5th or lower in the 2004 Constructors’ Championship were entitled to run a third car in free practice sessions on Fridays. These drivers did not compete in qualifying or the race.
It had rained throughout the morning and even though the track was wet at the start of the one-hour qualifying session, it had subsided by the time David Coulthard exited the pits upon the green light. Conditions were at a peak when Ralf Schumacher and Jenson Button locked out the front row, 0.035 seconds separating them. Button set the fastest second and third sectors but a poor first intermediate cost him pole position, citing understeer and a lack of confidence in the first sector. By the team the top finishers from the previous race attempted to set a time, conditions had deteriorated and the likes of Michael Schumacher, Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkonen qualified towards the back of the grid. Ralf Schumacher felt “we were lucky”, not expecting to qualify on pole, while Button said “it felt like a slow lap” and was “reasonably happy” to qualify second.
Qualifying classification
[edit]
- Notes
- ^1 – Räikkönen received a 10-place grid penalty for an engine change.
