First practice for the 2017 Formula 1 Japanese Grand Prix, the 16th round of the season, took place at Suzuka Circuit.
Sebastian Vettel was fastest with a 1:29.166. Lewis Hamilton was second, 0.211 seconds behind, and Daniel Ricciardo was third. The gaps from Vettel to second and third were 0.211 and 0.375 seconds, respectively.
The top five were Sebastian Vettel, Lewis Hamilton, Daniel Ricciardo, Kimi Räikkönen and Valtteri Bottas, in that order. Practice does not award points, and teams may follow different run plans, so the timesheet represents only the official result of this session.
Ferrari’s two drivers were first and fourth, Mercedes’ pair were second and fifth, and Red Bull’s drivers were third and sixth.
Valtteri Bottas completed the most laps with 30, while Carlos Sainz ran the fewest with 14.
Marcus Ericsson ended the session 4.231 seconds behind the leader.
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time / Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 1:29.166 | 23 |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +0.211s | 29 |
| 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull | +0.375s | 27 |
| 4 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | +0.472s | 22 |
| 5 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | +0.985s | 30 |
| 6 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | +1.596s | 26 |
| 7 | Esteban Ocon | Force India | +1.733s | 22 |
| 8 | Nico Hülkenberg | Renault | +1.808s | 24 |
| 9 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | +1.866s | 22 |
| 10 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren | +2.036s | 24 |
| 11 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | +2.050s | 15 |
| 12 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren | +2.069s | 19 |
| 13 | Sergio Pérez | Force India | +2.364s | 23 |
| 14 | Lance Stroll | Williams | +2.436s | 22 |
| 15 | Jolyon Palmer | Renault | +2.591s | 22 |
| 16 | Felipe Massa | Williams | +2.746s | 20 |
| 17 | Carlos Sainz | Toro Rosso | +3.086s | 14 |
| 18 | Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | +3.335s | 18 |
| 19 | Pascal Wehrlein | Sauber | +3.731s | 29 |
| 20 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber | +4.231s | 28 |
