Scuderia Ferrari HP leaves Japan with a third podium from as many races, thanks to a third place finish from Charles Leclerc.

A sixth place for Lewis Hamilton delivered a total of 23 points and the team thus maintains second place in the Constructors' standings. This was Leclerc's second podium of the season, his 52nd overall and number 839 for Ferrari. The race was one of the most spectacular seen at Suzuka, with an unprecedented number of overtaking moves, not just down to energy management, but also a testament to driver skill on the demanding Japanese track.

It was an action-packed race right from the start, with Charles getting off the line really well, going from fourth to second. Lewis also made up two places, confirming that the SF-26 deals well with starts. The key moment in the race was the arrival of the Safety Car on lap 22, after OIiver Bearman hit the barriers with considerable force. This penalised those who had already pitted, including Leclerc who thus found himself passed by Kimi Antonelli and Lewis, losing two places. But he staged a determined fightback, passing George Russell and then his own team-mate to reclaim third spot. There then followed a thrilling duel in the closing stages with Russell as Charles defended his place cleverly, especially through the final chicane, where the power of the Mercedes allowed it to close considerably. The Englishman did actually get ahead, but Charles passed him back immediately with a breath-taking move round the outside at turn 1. After Lewis was passed by Leclerc, Russell also got ahead and while defending, he pushed his tyres quite hard which made him vulnerable to an attack from Lando Norris, so that in the end, he had to settle for sixth place.

The season now faces an enforced break of almost a month, because of the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Grands Prix. The time will be spent usefully, analysing all the data from the first three races, carrying out simulation work and getting a better understanding of the energy management, while preparing for the next round, the Miami Grand Prix on 3 May at the Miami International Autodrome.

Charles Leclerc: We really had to work hard this time. We were a bit unlucky with the Safety Car, so I found myself having to chase the cars ahead. On the first few laps after the pit stop, I lost a few positions, but in the end stopping earlier wasn't a big disadvantage. I had to be very careful and manage the tyres well to make it to the end.

The race was good, I just lacked a bit of pace to catch Oscar (Piastri), but it was still a positive race, and with good energy management, I could defend the podium from George (Russell)'s attacks and bring home good points for the team.

We will use the next weeks to review and work on taking some steps forward before we head back to track in Miami and see how things stand after the break.

Lewis Hamilton: It was a demanding race, and clearly not the result I wanted. My first stint went well in terms of tyre management, but I simply didn't have the pace to compete.

The focus now is on understanding why and finding ways to improve. With a month before the next race, we'll use the time to analyse every detail from these first three races and make sure we come back stronger.

Fred Vasseur: I think this race was good for Formula 1 and good for the championship, as it was an exciting show. There was much more overtaking than we had at this track in the past. For us, this is a third consecutive podium. It was a very strong race from Charles in his battle with Russell, keeping him behind in the closing stages. It was a clever drive, sometimes making sure the Mercedes was in front so that he could pass him going into turn 1. It was good for the team and for everyone back in the factory to see that we were able to do this. It's a good way to go into the enforced break. We know that we have to push, we have to work to develop the car. As for Lewis, it's clear that once you do not have overtake mode you lose pace and a train forms on track. When the gap to the car ahead is more than a second, everything becomes more difficult. We know we have a deficit in terms of straight-line performance and we will work on that over the next weeks.

Check out our Sunday gallery from Suzuka here.