In Pictures: Italy 2024
The Italian Grand Prix Is more than just a race-it's a celebration of speed, precision, and pure adrenaline.It has been a permanent fixture on the Formula 1 World Championship calendar since its inception, making this year’s event the 75th edition. It has been held at Monza every year except for the 1980 race, which was held at Imola.
In 2024, the circuit embarked on a renovation and modernization process aimed at securing its future. As part of the first phase of this work, the entire track has been completely resurfaced. Additionally, some underpasses have been altered: the one at Santa Maria delle Selve and the two on the straight between the Ascari chicane and the Parabolica. A brand new underpass has also been constructed, linking the Vedano entrance to the Parabolica, designed to keep pedestrians and vehicles apart. Furthermore, the circuit's water collection and drainage systems have been refurbished.
At Monza, cars usually run in the lowest aerodynamic configuration of the season to reduce drag and favor top speed. Stability under braking and traction coming out of the two chicanes are the factors that test the tires the most. Additionally, the lateral loads in the fast corners, such as the Parabolica—now named in honor of Michele Alboreto—and the Curva Grande, should not be underestimated.
Five of the current drivers have won the Italian Grand Prix: Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly, and Daniel Ricciardo.
FRIDAY
It was quite an interesting afternoon of free practice for the Italian Grand Prix at the Monza circuit. The 20 drivers were able to assess the completely new track surface, which is proving to be considerably quicker than the previous one: there’s a difference of a second between this year’s FP1 sessions and those in 2023, and six-tenths in FP2.
Lewis Hamilton was quickest overall with a time of 1:20.738 in his Mercedes, followed closely by Lando Norris in the McLaren, just a whisker behind, with only three-thousandths of a second separating the two cars. Confirming how close the gaps continue to be this season, the fastest five—who were the only ones to get under the 1:21 barrier—were covered by a mere 154 thousandths of a second: behind the top two were Carlos Sainz (Ferrari, 1:20.841), Oscar Piastri (McLaren, 1:20.858), and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari, 1:20.892). Andrea Kimi Antonelli made his first appearance in an official Formula 1 session, but the Mercedes driver only completed five laps before crashing into the barriers at Parabolica. Also making his debut, Franco Colapinto is now an official Williams race driver after participating in FP1 at Silverstone with the same team. The last time an Argentinian raced in Formula 1 was at the 2001 San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, when Gaston Mazzacane drove for Prost.
SATURDAY
It was a very straightforward FP3 as drivers and teams worked to understand what seemed to be an ever-changing track, influenced by ambient temperature and the amount of rubber laid down. Drivers went from struggling at Parabolica to facing difficulties at the second Lesmo.
As for qualifying, it was a very exciting session, with the top four teams placing their pairs of drivers in the first eight spots on the Monza grid—in the order of McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull—in what was an eight-way fight from start to finish.
Lando Norris came out on top to secure his fifth pole position, his fourth this season, and his second in a row after taking the number one spot in Zandvoort just a week ago. The McLaren driver’s best time was 1:19.327. He was followed by his teammate Oscar Piastri, who clocked in at 1:19.436. This marked the Woking team’s 160th pole position and its first front-row lockout at the Italian Grand Prix since 2012, when Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button achieved the feat. On the second row, we find the Mercedes of George Russell (1:19.440) and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc (1:19.461). Only two other drivers managed to break the 1:20 barrier: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari, 1:19.467) and Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, 1:19.513). Behind them, there was a gap of over half a second to the Red Bull pair, with Max Verstappen (1:20.022) ahead of Sergio Perez (1:20.062).
SUNDAY
The beating red heart of Ferrari was the strongest of all at the Monza circuit as Charles Leclerc won the Italian Grand Prix for the second time, securing his seventh career win in Formula 1. It was Ferrari’s 20th victory in this event, making them the first team to win 20 times at the same circuit in F1 history. This marked the team’s 246th win in Formula 1 overall.
Leclerc took the checkered flag ahead of the two McLaren drivers, beating Oscar Piastri by 2.664 seconds and Lando Norris by 6.153 seconds. These three had the honor of wearing the special edition Podium Cap, in white with the Italian flag on its peak. They can be acquired at this link.
It was odd to see the McLaren duo, especially Lando Norris, so down after finishing third, and barely participating in the team’s celebrations afterward.
“It’s an incredible feeling, actually I thought that the first time would just feel like this, and then the second time – if there was a second time – wouldn’t feel as special, but my god, the emotions in the last few laps, exactly the same like in 2019. Just watching the grandstands inside of the track – which is tricky! – but incredible. I mean Monaco and Monza are the two races I want to win every year. Obviously I want to win as many races as possible, and the World Championship as soon as possible, but these are the two most important races of the season and I managed to win them this year. It’s so, so special.”
Excerpts of this article provided by Pirelli S.p.A.
