track guide, prediction, race preview

Sports Mole previews Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix at the Suzuka International Racing Course. Max Verstappen is looking to wrap up the Drivers' Championship.

Max Verstappen is closing in on the Drivers' Championship. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc can't prevent Ver stappEN winning his second world title. McLaren will be buoyed by their P4 and P5 finish in Singapore. Mercedes are unbeaten at Suzuka since 2014. Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will try to bounce back after their poor race in the last race. Alpine, Williams, AlphaTauri and Alfa Romeo will look to improve from Singapore, while Haas will aim for points. The C1, C2 and C3 compounds will race this weekend. With intermittent rain expected, the intermediate and full wet tyres will also be on standby.

Suzuka Circuit is one of the most popular tracks in Formula 1. It features 18 turns of varying speed and difficulty. The winner has come from the front row in 26 of 31 races held here. Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel have five and four wins respectively on this track. The track has a high level of tyre degradation. There are three turns with S Curves, which can catch drivers out early in the race.

Max Verstappen is going to win the race on Sunday. The higher speeds in the corners and straights will favour Red Bull.