Scintillating Suzuka: 5 unforgettable Japanese Grand Prix moments

Jonathan Victoria • 03 Apr 2025 Features

A beloved track with a plethora of memories.

Whether it comes early in the season or right at the end, the Japanese Grand Prix never fails to deliver. It has seen some of the most iconic moments in Formula 1 history and will no doubt continue to do so for years to come.

From title deciders to emotional endings, here are five unforgettable Japanese Grand Prix moments (plus some honourable mentions).

Prost vs Senna for the title | 1989

Credit: 1989 Japanese Grand Prix - Prost and Senna collision (BBC Live coverage) (BigOBigOCat, YouTube)
 

You literally cannot start a list like this with anything other than this race.

Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost, two of the greatest F1 drivers of all time, were teammates at McLaren in 1989 - and they did not like each other. Both were already accomplished - Senna with one title from the season before, Prost with two - and in their primes so saw no reason to allow an inch for the other.

That culminated with a heated rivalry that came to a head at the season’s penultimate race. Senna needed to win the last two races of the year to claim the title, regardless of where Prost finished in both outings.

Senna was on pole for the race, Prost in second, but the Frenchman sneakily made an adjustment to his wing that allowed him better straight-line speed, overtaking Senna off the line and holding the lead for the majority of the race.

From lap 40, the pair battled with the ferocity that only two certified F1 legends could accomplish. Unfortunately, that was undone on lap 47, as the two collided at 130R, taking both drivers out of the race - or so it seemed.

While Prost unbuckled and got out of his car, Senna employed the help of some marshals to give him a push-start, which worked, and he got back into the race, going on to win and claim the title - for all of the cooldown lap, as when he got back to the paddock, he was immediately disqualified.

McLaren contested the ruling but it was upheld, giving Prost, who would be leaving the team for Ferrari at the conclusion of the year, the 1989 World Championship, and in turn giving F1 fans an incident to debate about for life. A one-of-a-kind ending to a championship.

Prost vs Senna for the title vol. 2 | 1990

Credit: SENNA - Exclusive Clip ('90 Japanese Grand Prix) (SENNAmovie, YouTube)
 

Ok, so a two-of-a-kind then, as the exact same thing that happened the year prior happened the following year, only this time the roles were reversed.

Senna, still with McLaren, and Prost, now with Ferrari, were embroiled in yet another classic championship battle that came down to the penultimate race in Japan. This time around, Senna had the advantage going into the race with Prost needing the results to fall his way in the final two races.

Once again, Senna was on pole and Prost was in second. The lights went out and Prost got the better start, racing into the lead. It was all shaping up to be a repeat of the year prior - only for Senna to put an end to that.

Whether he genuinely meant to take the first corner or if he was getting back for what he deemed was a wrong made by Prost, the Brazilian went to take the inside line for the first corner, making contact with his rival and sending them both into retirement.

The damage was too much to both cars for either one to get a boost from the marshals so there was no helping Prost’s title chase. It was over, Senna (or karma, we’ll never know) got one back on him, and he’d have to wait until 1993 to claim his fourth world title, which would actually take him permanently one ahead of Senna as the Brazilian went on to win his third championship in 1991.

Senna vs Prost was one of the most fierce and storied rivalries in F1 history, but following Prost’s retirement, the two began to form a friendship until Senna’s untimely death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. These days, Prost never has a bad word to say about his former opponent, and we remember the pair for the duels between the greats that they are.

Raikkonen’s masterclass | 2005

20 years on and this is still remembered as one of the greatest drivers ever to emanate from Suzuka.

A rain-soaked qualifying caused a majorly shuffled starting grid, with championship hopeful Kimi Raikkonen positioning his McLaren down in 17th. His championship rivals, Fernando Alonso and the great seven-time champion Michael Schumacher, were positioned just ahead of him.

At the race start, all three drivers managed to steer clear of trouble, Alonso flying up to seventh by the end of the lap while Raikkonen struggled to keep the car on track, cutting the chicane at the Casio Triangle chicane. That, though, would be his only mistake of the race.

Raikkonen, Alonso and Schumacher all made charges through the field and eventually found themselves towards the front. Pit stops would constantly put one behind the others throughout but by lap 38, Raikkonen was leading the race.

He made one final stop with eight laps remaining which put him behind Alonso’s Renault teammate Giancarlo Fisichella by a couple of seconds. But that was no issue as with much fresher tyres, he was able to chase down the Italian and pass him to complete a masterful victory.

The 2005 season is remembered as a passing of the torch, with both Raikkonen and eventual championship winner Alonso passing Schumacher (Alonso quite literally so during this race, a little more on that later) to show they’re ready to step up when he leaves.

Hill's emotional championship victory | 1996 

The sound of Murray Walker’s choked-up call is the first thought that comes to mind when remembering Damon Hill’s victory at the 1996 Japanese Grand Prix.

The championship would be decided that day, the final race of the season, between Williams teammates Hill and Jacques Villeneuve, with Hill holding a nine-point advantage at the race start. The pair had battled all season in a memorable campaign, so it was only fitting it would come down to Suzuka to decide it.

While it didn’t end up being a decider with both drivers fighting all race long, thanks to Villeneuve’s right rear tyre coming off, it wouldn’t stop many from feeling the emotions of the victory for the Briton - seemingly none more so than for the lead commentator Walker.

Hill’s win wasn’t just for a championship. His title victory in 1996 made him the first son of a former world champion in F1 history. His father, Graham Hill, was a racing legend, claiming two World Championships (1962 and 1968) plus the coveted Triple Crown of Motorsport - that means winning an F1 World Championship, a victory at 24 Hours of Le Mans, and a victory at the Indy 500. To date, Graham Hill is still the only person to achieve this feat.

The victory meant so much for Damon, and for Walker, as he knew Graham well. Fascinatingly, championship runner-up Villeneuve was also the son of former F1 driver, Gilles Villeneuve, who was tragically killed during the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix. Jacques would go on to claim the 1997 World Championship.

Hunt claims Hollywood title | 1976

Credit: James Hunt F1 World Champion : 1976 Japan (Zsolt Karnay, YouTube)
 

F1 fans know the tale of the 1976 championship battle all too well. It was so good, in fact, that they made a Hollywood film out of it, starring the best-looking Hemsworth brother!

The late, great Niki Lauda suffered a near-fatal accident at the German Grand Prix in the latter stages of the season, an accident that looked unlikely for him to survive from. He 

Yet two races later, he returned, his title aspirations still very much intact. His title rival, James Hunt, had made ground in his absence and would continue to do so as Lauda found out his driving capabilities while still very much reeling from his injuries.

This culminated with a one-race shootout at the final race of the season at Fuji Speedway - Hunt three points behind Lauda. The conditions were torrid, as they were in Germany, and as such, Lauda didn’t fancy another brush with death and retired from the race on the second lap due to his and many other drivers’ concerns about the unstable conditions.

Hunt had to finish third or higher in this case, and he was doing a good job of achieving this until a puncture with 11 laps to go forced him into the pits. He came out in fifth but managed to chase down the two ahead to cross the line third - only for the scoreboard still saying he was in fifth (it wasn’t all electronic like these days).

The deliberations didn’t take long for the race officials to realise the error and correct the finishing positions, handing Hunt his deserved third place and thus the 1976 World Championship.

Honourable mentions

Credit: Alonso overtake Schumacher onboard 2005 Japan (Videok 4 kereken, YouTube).
 

We would be remiss not to mention these three moments, and while you may be thinking we’ve missed some more, believe us, we would add them all if it wouldn’t end up making this an endless list. The Japanese Grand Prix never fails to deliver.

Kobayashi claims stunning home podium | 2012 – 

Kamui Kobayashi, the only Japanese driver on the grid in 2012, managed to claim a stunning home podium, his only one of his career, after a tense battle with the faster McLaren of Jenson Button to finish third. It was the first home podium for a Japanese driver since Aguri Suzuki’s third-place in 1990.

Verstappen’s confusing yet staggering second title | 2022 – Severe rain affected the ‘22 Japanese Grand Prix, allowing for only 40 minutes of racing. Yet in that time, reigning world champion Max Verstappen pulled out an astonishing 27-second lead in the horrendous conditions (sound familiar?) And thanks to a confusing rule from the FIA, no one realised that he had actually successfully retained his title until shortly walking out onto the podium.

Alonso takes Schumacher around 130R | 2005 – Alonso, already 2005 world champion, proved he had what it took to go wheel-to-wheel with the Schumacher, making an audacious move round the outside of 130R. It would prove a rather telling sign for the rivalry the pair shared the following season.