3 Takeaways from the Italian Grand Prix 

3 Takeaways from the Italian Grand Prix 

The Italian Grand Prix is here! Formula One kicks off their two weekend leg for the end of the European half of the season. Known as “the temple of speed,” Monza is the home of the Scuderrai ferrari and of Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli. Coming into this weekend, there are a few things to follow this weekend: the whole redbull switch because of the injured Isack Hadjar, the unfolding of the epic homecomings of Ferrari and Antonelli, and Lando Norris being back into the championship conversation.

With all of the moving parts in a race, conversations start to move around. So here are three takeaways from the Italian Grand Prix in Monza! 

Italian Hometown Hero: 

The Italian kid does it! Kimi Antonelli wins the Italian Grand Prix! His home race, and the first Italian to win at home in 60 years. Starting from P19, after being slapped with a 30-place grid penalty for taking new power unit components past the allotted number he was given, Antonelli had a monstrous drive, taking the car all the way to the front to battle for P1 in the second half of the race with teammate George Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Antonelli now has a 66-point lead in the championship, with Russell right behind him. Will Russell be able to catch up to his teammate in the coming weeks? 

When will Ferrari get it right?: 

The Italian-based team had a strong FP1, with both drivers, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, having the fastest times of the session, ending up P1 and P2, respectively. Leclerc kept the momentum going, ending at P2 for FP2. Hamilton ended up in P2 for FP3. Both drivers made it into Q3, with Leclerc starting at P4 and Hamilton in P5.

The weekend had an unfortunate turn of events in the opening laps of the race when Leclerc went over a drainage hole and found himself in the tire barrier, bringing out a red flag for the race. Leclerc got out safely, but his weekend was over. Hamilton only lost one position, finishing in P6. It wasn’t the best weekend for the Italian-based team, but hopefully next week in Spain, they are able to turn it around. 

A Weekend for the Books: 

This weekend won’t be one Alpine driver, Pierre Gasly, will ever forget. Gasly had a dramatic start to the weekend when the FIA announced that his Monaco podium would be taken away after Gasly’s penalties for speeding in the pit lane were reinstated. The penalties dropped Pierre from P3 all the way down to P7.

It was like losing the Monaco podium fueled something in the Frenchman, as he found speed throughout qualifying and beat George Russell for pole in a nail-biting final second of the qualifying session. Gasly etched his name into the history books, securing his first career pole and being the first frenchman in get a pole position.

Gasly finished the race in P7, with teammate Franco Colapinto finishing in P9. The Italian Grand Prix helped Alpine inch closer to passing VCARB in the constructors’ standings for P5.