Formula 1 hits Suzuka Circuit today (Friday, April 4, 2025) for practice ahead of Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix.
Heading into the weekend, all eyes are on Red Bull Racing after a controversial driver swap since the last race in China. Liam Lawson is out after just two grands prix, demoted back to their junior team, Racing Bulls, whilst Yuki Tsunoda has gone the other way, replacing Lawson to become Max Verstappen's new team-mate.
Elsewhere in F1, people will be keeping a lookout for Ferrari and how they respond after a dismal Chinese Grand Prix. Although Lewis Hamilton won Saturday's sprint race in Shanghai, both he and his team-mate Charles Leclerc went on to be disqualified from Sunday's main event after what had already been a difficult day finishing in P5 and P6.
As a result, it's been a dismal start to the season for the Scuderia, who sit fifth in the constructors' championship with just 17 points, already 61 behind current championship leaders McLaren.
McLaren also top the drivers' standings at present, with Lando Norris leading the way ahead of Max Verstappen heading into the weekend.
With that said, let's take a look at when practice takes place in Japan and how you can watch it all unfold live.
F1 2025: Japanese Grand Prix start times
Practice action at the Japanese Grand Prix continues on Saturday at 11:30 am local time (JST) with FP1. However, this will still technically be Friday in the United States, with a start time of 10:30 pm (ET).
Find the session start times converted to your local time zone below.
Japanese Grand Prix FP3 start times - Saturday, April 4, 2025
Location
Start Time
Local Time (JST)
11:30 AM
New York, United States (ET)
10:30 PM (Friday)
Chicago, United States (CT)
9:30 PM (Friday)
Denver, United States (MT)
8:30 PM (Friday)
Los Angeles, United States (PT)
7:30 PM (Friday)
London, United Kingdom (GMT)
3:30 AM
Sydney, Australia (AEDT)
13:30 PM
Adelaide, Australia (ACDT)
13 PM
Perth, Australia (AWST)
10:30 AM
Mexico City, Mexico (CST)
9:30 PM (Friday)
Berlin, Germany (CET)
4:30 AM
Tokyo, Japan (JST)
11:30 AM
Cape Town, South Africa (SAST)
4:30 AM
Cairo, Egypt (EET)
4:30 AM
Beijing, China (CST)
10:30 AM
New Delhi, India (IST)
8 AM
São Paulo, Brazil (BRT)
11:30 PM (Friday)
Singapore, Singapore (SGT)
10:30 AM
How to watch F1 live on TV
Practice from the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix is set to be shown live on ESPN in the United States. However, different sessions are set to be shown in different places.
FP1 will be shown on ESPN+, for example, whilst FP2 will be shown live on ESPN2. On Saturday, F1 action returns to ESPN+ for FP3.
With that said, broadcast details do vary depending on your location. Please check the information below to see how to watch F1 in your respective country this season.
Country
Broadcaster(s)
United States
ESPN, ESPN Deportes
Mexico
Fox Sports Mexico, Televisa
Australia
Fox Sports, Foxtel, Kayo
United Kingdom
Sky Sports
Italy
Sky Italia
Belgium
RTBF, Play Sports
Netherlands
Viaplay, Viaplay Xtra
Spain
DAZN F1
Canada
RDS, RDS 2, TSN, Noovo
Germany
Sky Deutschland, RTL
France
Canal+
Singapore
beIN SPORTS
China
CCTV, Shanghai TV, Guangdong Television Channel, Tencent
Japan
Fuji TV, DAZN
Hungary
M4 (MTVA Sports Channel)
Brazil
Bandeirantes, Bandsports
Austria
Servus TV, ORF
Middle East & Turkey
beIN SPORTS
Africa
SuperSport
India
FanCode
Latin America
ESPN
F1 action in 2025 is also available to watch via F1TV Pro in selected countries.
GP AUSTRALIA
14 - 14 Mar
GP CHINA
21 - 21 Mar
GP JAPAN
4 - 4 Apr
GP BAHRAIN
11 - 11 Apr
GP SAUDI ARABIA
18 - 18 Apr
GP USA
2 - 2 May
GP ITALY
16 - 16 May
GP MONACO
23 - 23 May
GP SPAIN
30 - 30 May
Grand Prix of Australia 2025
Grand Prix du Canada 2025 
Grand Prix of Austria 2025 
Grand Prix of Belgium 2025 
Grand Prix of Hungary 2025 
Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2025 
Grand Prix of Singapore 2025 
Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2025 
Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2025 
Qatar Grand Prix 2025 
Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2025 
Innovatieweg 20C