F1 standings update: Sainz moves into top six, Mercedes seal double!

Mercedes sealed both championships at Suzuka this weekend, although the drivers' championship hasn't been decided yet between their drivers. However, any other driver is now out of contention with four races to go, meaning the Silver Arrows will have a record-setting six consecutive double championships.

They had to outscore Ferrari by at least 14 points to confirm the constructors' championship and they did exactly that, with the Italian team shooting themselves in the foot with a terrible start as they let Valtteri Bottas through to P1. Charles Leclerc also drove into Max Verstappen at turn two, ending the Dutchman's race and blowing his own chances of getting a good result that would keep himself and Ferrari in contention for the championships.

With his third P5-finish of the season, Sainz has now overtaken Pierre Gasly for P6 in the drivers' standings. Alexander Albon is hunting the Spaniard down, however, since he got a seat at Red Bull over the summer break. The Thai driver is 12 points behind Sainz now with four races to go, meaning it could go down to the wire for P6 in the championship!

For Renault, McLaren are starting to get out of sight, with the gap increasing to 36 points now. They'll need a weekend like Italy to stand any chance to finish best of the rest again like they did last season, and given their current pace and form, it looks unlikely. Both cars in the points in Japan is a positive result, but with Sainz in P5, they haven't made any ground up to McLaren.

2019 Formula 1 drivers' championship standings

2019 Formula 1 constructors' championship standings