The autumn leaves are out and the cherry blossoms are in as the Japanese Grand Prix makes its spring debut this weekend in Mie Prefecture.

Like much of the rest of the calendar, the last two races at Suzuka Circuit have been very kind to Red Bull, its engine supplier Honda and its star driver Max Verstappen.

In 2022, the Dutchman clinched his second drivers’ title with a win in the rain, while last year the Milton Keynes, England-based team secured its second consecutive constructors’ title after Verstappen took the checkered flag.