Italian GP qualifying: Pole for Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari’s problems get worse

1:16

Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton took another pole position at Monza before the Italian GP.

Lewis Hamilton overtook Valtteri Bottas for pole position at the Italian GP as Mercedes dominated qualifying, while Carlos Sainz was a surprise third for McLaren and Sebastian Vettel fell at the first Monza hurdle.

It was a miserable Saturday on the track of their beloved home for Ferrari with Vettel in Q1 and Charles Leclerc only 13th, and Red Bull also struggled in a fighting session as both drivers were lost in the second row.

But after claiming new engine rules for Italy were introduced to “slow us down”, Mercedes comfortably handled the lack of ‘party mode’ and near-constant traffic to crush the competition, and it was Hamilton who sealed its 94th pole. with a track record around the fastest track in F1.

Hamilton outscored his teammate Bottas by just 0.069s, and eight tenths faster than the closest non-Silver Arrow opponent.

It turned out to be Sainz, whom Sky F1’s Martin Brundle said produced the “lap of the day” to overtake Sergio Perez at Racing Point and lead the second row, with Max Verstappen in a disappointing fifth for Red Bull.

His teammate Alex Albon will only start Sunday’s race, live on Sky Sports F1 at 2.10 pm, ninth and behind Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo and Lance Stroll.

When is the Italian GP in Sky F1?

All TV schedules for this weekend’s Italian GP – Live only on Sky Sports F1.

But for the first time since 1984, Ferrari was not in the top 10 in the Italian GP standings.

Vettel fell victim to the traffic “mess” at the end of Q1 when drivers, like last year, jostled for position at the start of their crucial fastest laps in a bid for a wake, with an angry four. times world champion. unable to improve.

0:47

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel will start from 17th on the grid for the Italian Grand Prix after he was hampered by traffic in the first qualifying round.

Esteban Ocon and Kimi Raikkonen came particularly close to colliding in that case.

Leclerc, meanwhile, said he could do no more after qualifying 13th, 0.2 seconds behind a spot on the penalty shootout in Q3.

“The real concern is that is his true pace,” Brundle said of the most successful team in F1. “It’s not that they had a pilot error or a bit of bad luck, that’s their pace.”

Qualifying result for the Italian GP
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
2. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes
3. Carlos Sainz, McLaren
4. Sergio Pérez, Racing Point
5. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
6. Lando Norris, McLaren
7. Daniel Ricciardo, Renault
8. Lance Stroll, Racing Point
9. Alex Albon, Red Bull
10. Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri

Party for Mercedes? Think again

A new F1 engine rule has been introduced for this weekend’s Italian GP, ​​and teams now have to operate in the same single engine mode from the start of qualifying to the end of the race. Mercedes, believed to have one of F1’s most powerful ‘party modes’ on a Saturday, believed that their qualifying pace would be hampered due to the change.

But based on the evidence from Monza, they need not worry.

Hamilton and Bottas negotiated the fastest times in all qualifying segments, even in Q1 on medium tires, and neither team really came close to them, with alleged closest rivals Red Bull even slipping in midfield.

1:21

Max Verstappen wasn’t surprised to finish fifth in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix after admitting that Red Bull had struggled at Monza.

Bottas, so desperate for the championship momentum, had the lead in the final heat but was beaten on both laps of Q3 by Hamilton, who has a habit of delivering when it matters most.

“You saw how close he was between all of us,” Hamilton said, referring to the Monza traffic. “And it really demanded a clean lap. I think I did that on both of them, so overall I’m very happy.”

Renault also appears to have had little trouble with the new engine rule, with three Renault-powered drivers in the top seven at Sainz, Norris and Ricciardo.

Though it may not have been related to the regulation change, Verstappen regularly mentioned a lack of power in Q3 on his way to a third-row start.

Vettel and Russell frustrated with Monza traffic, Q1 exit

The impact of the ‘tow’ around the high-speed Monza is greater than on any track on the calendar, as evidenced by last year’s qualifying charade when the drivers bumped into each other at the end of Q3, and as the teams avoided a direct replay on La pole fight, there was even more controversy on Saturday.

That was particularly the case at the end of Q1, as all but three drivers started for the final fast laps at the same time, causing a backlog of cars before the final corner for Parabolica on their starting laps. That meant drivers, including those at Vettel, who needed to improve to get to Q2, were running almost wheel-to-wheel in their fundamental efforts.

0:47

Alfa Romeo’s Kimi Raikkonen nearly crashed into Renault’s Esteban Ocon during Q1 of the Italian Grand Prix.

Ocon and Raikkonen, who progressed, nearly collided, while Vettel’s George Russell and Williams lost a great deal of time at the opening chicane on their laps, with neither driver from the bottom five posting fast enough times.

“It was a complete disaster,” said Karun Chandhok of Sky F1. “They were all very committed.”

Russell, as angry at his team for sending him in at the time as he was at rival drivers, raged on team radio.

1:32

Both Ferraris failed to reach the top 10 at their home Grand Prix in Italy with a disappointing performance in Qualifying.

“F *** me guys, what are we playing at?” he said. “We have to be the ones to take advantage of these screwed ups, not the screwed up ones.”

Russell added to Sky F1: “We are the slowest team on the grid. We need exceptional circumstances.” [to progress] and these were exceptional circumstances.

“We’re all in the same boat. I don’t know why everyone sends cars at exactly the same time. I guess it looked a bit comical. It’s frustrating.”