2024 Formula 1 Preview & Review.

[Fortitude]

Leclerc in seventh heaven after Ferrari home win: 'My god, the emotions...'
It is no surprise Charles Leclerc was overjoyed after his impressive win in the Italian Grand Prix. The Ferrari driver won in front of the frenzied tifosi, who were present in large numbers at the Monza circuit.
1 Sept 2024
Nicole Mulder
GPblog.com

Leclerc over the moon after Ferrari home win at Monza. "It is an incredible feeling," began Leclerc, who has already won the Italian GP back in 2019. "I thought the second time, if there was a second time, would not feel as special as the first, but the emotions over the last few laps were the same as 2019. I want to win Monza and Monaco every year and I have managed to do so. It is so, so special. The tifosi were incredible, mamma mia!"

Asked whether Ferrari will also be in good shape for the Formula 1 race in Baku, Leclerc does not yet dare to make any predictions. "Our package was working well on a track like Monza but whether it will be the same for the rest of the season I doubt. I still think McLaren are favourites but we have done a step forwards, that's for sure," the Ferrari driver explained.

‘Seventh heaven’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29855...prix-2024.html


Ferrari strategy masterstroke gives Leclerc famous Italian GP victory
A one-stop strategy from Charles Leclerc saw Ferrari take victory at Monza
1 Sept 2024
Adriano Boin
Total Motorsport

Charles Leclerc and Ferrari pulled off a strategical masterstroke on Sunday, getting the better of both McLarens and taking victory in front of the cheering tifosi at the 2024 Italian GP. It all seemed to be going in McLaren‘s favour, with the papaya duo sitting one-two before the second round of pitstops.

After McLaren stated over the team radio that their drivers could race one another under ‘papaya rules’, it all became a moot point when Norris made a mistake at Turn 4. This allowed Leclerc to close up right behind him, and McLaren pitted Norris for a new set of hards on Lap 33.

Piastri came in soon after, making it a Ferrari one-two at the front with Leclerc leading Sainz. While the rest of the grid also came in for a second stop, the Scuderia opted to keep the pair out in hopes of claiming a famous victory in front of the Tifosi. It paid off in the end, Leclerc taking his second victory of the season following his success in Monaco.

‘Ferrari strategy masterstroke’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/fer...-2024-victory/


Leclerc and Ferrari snatch Italian GP win from McLaren
Sep 1, 2024
by Ben Anderson
The Race

Charles Leclerc scored a brilliantly opportunistic victory for Ferrari in the 2024 Italian Grand Prix, defeating Oscar Piastri’s McLaren thanks to a strategic masterstroke at Monza. As McLaren, Mercedes and Red Bull all committed their drivers to a two-stop race following a frenetic pace in the opening stint, Ferrari gambled on making it to the end with just one pitstop.

Leclerc held a lead of 11.5 seconds over Piastri with just eight laps to run, after Piastri overtook the rear-gunning Ferrari of Carlos Sainz into the Ascari chicane. Sainz was at this stage struggling with his front-left tyre, despite pitting four laps later than Leclerc did, but Leclerc’s pace held up better - and although Piastri was charging along in the closing laps, Leclerc held on to win by 2.6 seconds.

‘Brilliantly opportunistic victory for Ferrari’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/i...rrari-mclaren/


Charles Leclerc the toast of Italy as Ferrari outsmart Lando Norris and McLaren
McLaren dominated the Italian Grand Prix with Oscar Piastri leading for most of the race after getting past pole-sitter Lando Norris, but Charles Leclerc was the one who delivered for Ferrari
1 Sep 2024
Daniel Moxon Senior F1 Writer
The Mirror

Charles Leclerc is the toast of Italy again after pulling off a second famous Ferrari victory at Monza - five years on to the day from his first.

McLaren were outsmarted by Ferrari who pulled only pitted Leclerc once. And the Monegasque had enough juice in his tyres to hold off the charging Piastri and send the Italian fans ballistic. Leclerc, who secured Ferrari's last Monza win in 2019, said: "It's an incredible feeing.

‘Enough juice in his tyres’;

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/formu...4-win-33579098


Leclerc overjoyed after leading Ferrari to an unexpected home victory in Monza
The Monegasque driver came through from P4 on the grid to win the Italian Grand Prix for a second time
September 1, 2024
Darius Needham
FormulaNerds

Charles Leclerc was overcome with emotion after claiming victory in Monza, as he described the win at Ferrari’s home as “an incredible feeling.” After qualifying for the race yesterday in P4, Leclerc knew that it would be an uphill task to get past both McLaren’s who lined up on the front row of the grid. However, with most teams opting for a two-stop strategy, Leclerc and Ferrari would go bold by sticking to the one stop.

The first time was so nice, Leclerc had to do it twice. Speaking to formula1.com and the media after the race, Leclerc was overcome with emotion as he described winning in Monza for the second time in his career just as sweet as the first time. “Just watching the grandstands inside of the track – which is tricky! – but incredible,” added Leclerc, who earlier this year won his home race in Monte Carlo for the first time.

“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.”

‘Leclerc overjoyed’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/le.../?nowprocket=1


Leclerc thought Monza F1 win was gone with Norris undercut
1 Sept 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Charles Leclerc has expressed that he was concerned his chance to win Formula 1’s Italian Grand Prix had dissipated when Lando Norris undercut him at his pit stop. The Monegasque, who questioned Ferrari’s choice to react to Norris’ first stop, has admitted that he was worried his prospects had been hindered stopping on Lap 16. “I thought that we’ll struggle a bit more compared to the McLaren, but also compared to the Mercedes that seemed to have a really good pace on Friday.”

“However, after a few laps I saw and I felt the car was in a good place. Oscar maybe was a little bit quicker. It was difficult to see Lando’s pace as he was behind. Then once we got undercut, I thought, okay, maybe we are losing the win there, but then once both pitted, I actually picked up quite a lot of front grip having the free air in front.”

“As they said, being the last car, I didn’t have much to lose by trying the one-stop, but we did a really, really good job with that front left, which has been very, very tricky for everybody. We had a lot of front braking but managed to take that front grip again and that helped us to win today.”

‘Thought Monza F1 win was gone’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...rris-undercut/


Leclerc stuns with home win for Ferrari at Monza
Piastri finishes runner-up and title-chasing Briton Norris takes third place
01 SEPT 2024
ALAN BALDWIN
Financial Mail

Monza - Charles Leclerc gave Ferrari a stunning home Italian Grand Prix victory and sent the crowd wild with delight after nursing his tyres on a bold one-stop strategy to deny favourites McLaren a one-two finish.

‘Leclerc stuns with home win’;

https://www.businesslive.co.za/bd/sp...rari-at-monza/


‘The emotions were exactly like 2019’ says Leclerc after leading Ferrari to victory joy in Monza
1 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site

The result in Italy was aided by upgrades brought to this race by Ferrari. But Leclerc was unsure about whether the team could now become consistent challengers in the remaining eight races of the season, as he looked ahead to the next race in Baku – a track where he has traditionally performed well.

“I don’t know,” said Leclerc, when asked if the upgrade had made the difference, “because I think our package was working pretty well on a track like Monza. Whether it will be the same for the rest of the season, I doubt so.

‘Aided by upgrades’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...MTWBATRErpXia1

[Fortitude]

Media don't hold back on McLaren: 'Record-breaking self-destruction'.
'Norriscide' at Monza! Apocalypse Now, for McLaren! 'Harakiri' at McLaren! The horror, the horror…"
2 Sep 2024
Nicole Mulder
GPblog.com

La Gazzetta dello Sport: "Monza confirmed all McLaren's philosophical shortcomings in the face of a world championship that can and - given the current value of their car and Red Bull's problems - perhaps should be won. The team has been fumbling for months now and failing to take advantage of the opportunities that have presented themselves. Seeing Piastri slip past Norris on the first lap (also losing his position to Leclerc) and not letting him take second place on the final lap is an example of truly record-breaking self-destruction. Team orders are annoying to impose, but losing titles that can be won is certainly much worse."

AS: Spain's AS speaks of nothing less than 'harakiri' (the Japanese word for a traditional form of suicide) at McLaren. The newspaper does not understand why McLaren allowed Piastri to make a second pit stop and thus let a certain victory slip away. "Under pressure from Leclerc, he had to make a second stop. The stragglers also stopped and that forced McLaren to make the biggest mistake: Piastri had a huge lead but was still asked to make his second stop on lap 39 of 53, forcing him to make up almost 15 seconds in 14 laps. The simulation should have given the MCL38 a two-second per lap lead in those conditions."

‘McLaren's philosophical shortcomings’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29878...clerc-win.html


Martin Brundle just got ‘confirmation’ of how Oscar Piastri feels about Lando Norris’s title hopes
2 Sep 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Martin Brundle now sure Oscar Piastri has ‘zero interest’ in Lando Norris’s title challenge. Reflecting after the race, co-commentator David Croft said: “The big questions at McLaren will be what happened on the first lap, should Oscar have gone for it, did that then hurt our strategy, did we push too hard in that opening strategy [spell] so that we had to commit to a two-stop?”

Brundle replied: “With Leclerc in the middle of them as it ended up, it meant they had to cover that off. They didn’t get out front and then control the race. I think we got confirmation there that Piastri has zero interest in Lando Norris’s world championship.”

‘Zero interest’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/mar...s-title-hopes/


Rosberg grills Zak Brown face to face: 'You allowed Leclerc to come by'
2 Sep 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

McLaren are getting a lot of heat over their decision to let Oscar Piastri race against and overtake Lando Norris in the Italian Grand Prix. Norris had a chance to cut his World Championship deficit to Max Verstappen by around 15 points, but the British driver was overtaken by Piastri and then left exposed for Charles Leclerc to take advantage. When McLaren CEO Zak Brown visited the Sky Sports broadcasting area in the paddock, Rosberg didn't hold back. He said:

"Turn four. First, Lando almost spun. That was very close, it won't get closer than that. Then you allowed Leclerc to come through. Maybe that was those 2.6 seconds that cost you the win. Isn't it time to implement some rules here?!". Brown kept his cool: "That's what we'll discuss next week. We'll look at that. Getting Leclerc into the middle, could we have been able to pull away.”

“It's a fair question," Brown acknowledged. "It was an aggressive pass, so that's a conversation we'll have. It was a bit nerve-wracking on pit wall. Lando got a bad run out of that corner that opened the door a little bit. It would've been nice to see them run one-two for a little bit longer," Brown added before Rosberg dished out some praise for Piastri.

“Aggressive pass”;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29879...-in-italy.html


McLaren’s squandered chances and Leclerc cools expectations: Three things we learnt from Italian GP
2 Sep 2024
Malay Mail

McLaren’s missed opportunity: McLaren have done great work in developing the best car on the paddock and should be considered favourites for the constructors’ championship as they only trail Red Bull by eight points. But both of their drivers were on the front row of the starting grid yesterday and Piastri’s daring early overtake of Norris came as a huge surprise for a team which had a great chance to claim one-two finishes in both qualifying and the GP.

Norris said after the race that he’s not in F1 “just to beg for someone to let me pass”, but the Briton seemed extremely disappointed that McLaren didn’t order Piastri, who is 106 points behind Verstappen, to lay off. “I would love it but it’s not up to me."

‘McLaren’s squandered chances’;

https://www.malaymail.com/news/sport...lian-gp/148939


Piastri's controversial move divides opinion: 'Should they have done that?'
2 Sept 2024
Toby Nixon
GPblog.com

Oscar Piastri's aggressive first-lap overtake on teammate Lando Norris has divided the opinion of the paddock. The race-changing manoeuvre meant that Norris finished behind Piastri. The Brit eventually crossed the line in third place as Charles Leclerc took an emphatic victory in front of the adoring Tifosi. Norris thinks Piastri's move was too aggressive, as he scored fewer points than he hoped in the hunt to cut down Max Verstappen's championship lead. Former F1 driver Karun Chandhok debated this, as he thinks Piastri's move was completely fair.

Chandhok: Piastri was 'absolutely fair': "As we get into the braking zone, and we look at the apex, Lando's got plenty of space. Oscar has left him a car's width, so he hasn't squeezed him, he hasn't pinched him, but he's put himself in a position to crucially be in front at that second apex. His eye is already looking at that second apex and thinks, 'I want to be the inside line there', and Lando had to have a massive snap of oversteer, which really compromised his exit," Chandhok began on Sky Sports.

‘Piastri's controversial move’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29887...-in-monza.html


‘What team orders?’ Norris calls out Piastri as ‘way too close’ move adds fuel to fire
Sept 2, 2024
Fox Sports

Lando Norris claimed Oscar Piastri’s Lap 1 move for the lead at the Italian Grand Prix was “way too close for comfort” as a fresh source of tension in the McLaren garage emerged. Norris started the race at Monza in pole position, but lost the race lead just seconds in after his Australian teammate made an opportunistic move at the della Roggia chicane.

The move came despite talk during the week of McLaren favouring Norris over Piastri with a title race potentially on the cards. “I don’t think Norris expected his teammate to do that!” Martin Brundle exclaimed on Sky Sports’ commentary. “Team orders? What team orders?!” David Croft added.

Meanwhile, Piastri wasn’t buying into any suggestions that his move was overly-aggressive. “I broke later and got around the outside,” the Australian said. “There wasn’t really much more to it than that. We both got through it unscathed. I knew once I hit the brakes I kind of got ahead a bit and knew I was entitled to stay on the outside. For 38 laps, it put me in a race-winning position. So it was just a good first lap.”

‘Fuel to fire’;

https://www.foxsports.com.au/motorsp...7e5db8bf7237ed


'It hurts a lot': Oscar Piastri blows lead in 'painful' grand prix loss to Charles Leclerc
Sept 1, 2024
CNN

Aussie Piastri had led for much of the race after overtaking his McLaren teammate and polesitter Lando Norris on the first chicane but opted for a two-stop strategy, wary of his tyres degrading too much. Norris pitted too, and that left the two Ferrari cars of Leclerc and Carlos Sainz out in front with a healthy lead as the remaining laps ticked down.

Piastri too was left "hurting" from his second-place finish, he said in his post-race interview. "It hurts a lot. Did a lot of things right today … from the position we were in with the tyres looking like they did, doing a one-stop seemed like a risky call and in the end, it was right," he said. "Very happy with the pace … just when you finish second it hurts.”

"Today, unfortunately we got it a bit wrong, and (I was) a big part of that. We had everything to lose from being at the head of the race and Charles could try something a bit different, he was going to finish third anyway. He picked the right gamble today … yep, painful."

‘Left "hurting" from his second-place finish’;

https://www.nine.com.au/sport/motors...02-p5k70t.html


Oscar Piastri issues response to daring Lando Norris overtake as ‘papaya rules’ explained
1 Sep 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

“I mean, I broke later and got around the outside, there wasn’t really much more to it than that,” Piastri told media including PlanetF1.com after the race.

When asked for an explanation of what ‘papaya rules’ means, Norris put it plainly: “Just don’t crash. That’s all. There was no contact, so he did a good job.”

‘Papaya rules’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/oscar-...ules-explained

[Fortitude]

Lando Norris' Unwanted Streak Continued at Italian GP.
Lando Norris continued his worrying streak of losing the lead on the opening lap of a race when starting from pole position at the Italian Grand Prix this past weekend.
2 Sep 2024
Ryan Sinnott
Give Me Sport

After a brilliant display during qualifying to clinch his fourth pole of the season, it was a Sunday to forget for the Brit as a sluggish start ensured that he finished third behind Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc and McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.

This was the seventh time that the 24-year-old has started at the front of the grid during his career, but just like the six previous occasions, he failed to finish the opening lap in first place.

Lando Norris' streak of losing lead on first lap

Race Pole position Leading after lap 1

2021 Sochi Grand Prix Lando Norris Carlos Sainz Jr

2023 Sao Paulo Sprint Lando Norris Max Verstappen

2024 Shanghai Sprint Lando Norris Lewis Hamilton

2024 Barcelona Grand Prix Lando Norris George Russell

2024 Hungaroring Grand Prix Lando Norris Oscar Piastri

2024 Zandvoort Grand Prix Lando Norris Max Verstappen

2024 Italian Grand Prix Lando Norris Oscar Piastri

‘Unwanted Streak Continued’;

https://www.givemesport.com/lando-no...-continued-f1/


Stella unphased with Piastri's overtake on Norris: "I welcome it"
2 September at 16:49
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

The Italian Grand Prix was a missed opportunity for McLaren in many respects. A front-row lockout gave them the best chance to secure maximum points and capitalise on a faltering Red Bull, but they were out-foxed by the one-stop strategy of Ferrari and Charles Leclerc. Lando Norris also missed out on the chance to significantly cut the then 70-point deficit on Max Verstappen. However, his teammate Oscar Piastri was allowed to battle and overtake him on lap 1, almost coming together in the process.

Speaking to the paddock at Monza, which included GPblog, Andrea Stella, the Italian team boss, was asked about how close his two drivers came on the first lap, to which he answered: "The drivers were close together, but this is because they were close together on the grid. So for me, I welcome, and I look forward to having many more of these situations. What we need to do is to make sure that in these situations, the outcome is the one that works best for the team and for the drivers."

‘Stella unphased’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29893...-at-monza.html


McLaren warned against ‘destroying’ Oscar Piastri with ‘papaya rules’ investigation underway
2 Sep 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Ralf Schumacher has warned McLaren they could “destroy” Oscar Piastri if they ask him to back off from Lando Norris with Andrea Stella saying they’ll review their “papaya rules” after Monza. It’s a position Schumacher doesn’t envy Stella for being in.

“As long as the two are so close together, I would have a hard time as team boss,” he admitted. “You can destroy a driver to some extent if you tell him that he has to back off.”

‘Could “destroy” Oscar Piastri’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/oscar-...w-papaya-rules


Lando Norris wants McLaren team orders after Italian GP drama
Norris was overtaken by his teammate Oscar Piastri on Lap 1 in Monza and eventually finished third
1 Sept 2024
Brandon Sutton
Total Motorsport

Lando Norris suggested he wants team orders for the rest of the season although he conceded it isn’t his demand to make following another poor Lap 1 at the 2024 Italian GP when he was overtaken by Oscar Piastri.

“I would love it, but it’s not up to me,” Norris told members of the media, including Total-Motorsport.com of team orders. “It’s tough because obviously as a driver, you don’t want it. You don’t want things to just be played that way.”

“I would love it”;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/lan...lian-gp-drama/


Windsor baffled by McLaren's attidude: 'Didn't control their F1 drivers'
2 Sep 2024
Nicole Mulder
GPblog.com

Peter Windsor does not understand at all McLaren's decision to let Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris compete against each other. It may be a fair approach, but with Red Bull Racing's current state, it could just ruin the Woking-based Formula One team's chances of beating Max Verstappen in the Formula 1 World Championship.

"This is the second time that Lando's found himself in a position of having to do something to avoid Oscar," Windsor said in his analysis on YouTube. "Here it was Oscar on the outside and you can see Lando was completely shocked completely caught by surprise. Oscar took the lead of the Italian Grand Prix. I mean what was that all about? What was the risk that was worth taking at that stage of the race with Lando Norris on the Pole and having led out of the first corner?"

‘Baffled by McLaren's attidude’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29879...r-piastri.html


Squeamish Lando Norris is being let down by muddled McLaren... the only way the Brit can win world championship is if he's made the No 1 driver, writes JONATHAN McEVOY
• There were high hopes for Lando Norris going into the Italian Grax Prix weekend
• From pole, he came third, behind Charles Leclerc and team-mate Oscar Piastri
• McLaren must give the Brit priority if he's to beat Max Verstappen to the title
1 Sept 2024
Jonathan McEvoy
MailOnline

There is only one way Lando Norris can win the world championship. And that is if McLaren help him to do it by making him their No 1 driver. He cannot do it on his own. That much became even more glaringly clear by the fourth corner of an Italian Grand Prix won unexpectedly by Charles Leclerc to the cheering, flag-waving delirium of the tifosi who flooded the home straight afterwards.

Norris was indignant afterwards despite seeing his championship deficit to Max Verstappen, who finished sixth and calling his car a 'monster', cut from 70 to 62 points with eight races and three sprints remaining. 'We could easily have crashed had I braked one metre later. But if I could rewind I would do it differently. Maybe I was too much on the cautious side and I paid the price.'

‘Squeamish Lando Norris’;

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...AN-McEVOY.html


McLaren boss says both F1 titles now on, orders may follow
1 Sep 2024
The Straits Times

MONZA, Italy - McLaren boss Andrea Stella said both Formula One titles were achievable after Sunday's Italian Grand Prix and indicated team orders could be used to help Lando Norris battle Red Bull's Max Verstappen. Norris cut Verstappen's lead to 62 points with eight races remaining, plus sprints, while McLaren are only eight behind Red Bull in the constructors' standings.

The Briton would have cut Verstappen's lead by much more had he converted pole position into victory at Monza but Australian team mate Oscar Piastri overtook him on lap one and also opened the door for Ferrari's eventual winner Charles Leclerc.

‘Both F1 titles now on’;

https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/f...ers-may-follow


Helmut Marko sends thanks to McLaren as ‘papaya rules’ let Red Bull off the hook
2 Sep 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Helmut Marko thanked McLaren for not going down the team orders route at Monza as it has ensured the damage was limited for Red Bull at the Italian Grand Prix.

Marko appreciated McLaren’s “sporting behaviour”. He added to the German media: “You could see that on the first lap and that they did not change places later. In other words, our misperformance was not that noticeable. It could have been worse, but the gap is about the same as in Zandvoort.”

‘Thanks to McLaren for ‘papaya rules’!’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/helmut...misperformance


Marko laughs at 'McLaren's sportsmanship': 'I want to thank them for that'
1 Sept 2024
Cas van de Kleut
GPblog.com

Red Bull Racing had a dramatic race weekend in Monza. Max Verstappen saw his championship lead shrink again, as Lando Norris finished third with the fastest race lap. Yet things could have been a lot worse had the Briton won. Red Bull's top consultant, Helmut Marko, can, therefore, laugh at the fact that this did not happen.

There was little upbeat about the race for Red Bull, yet Marko smilingly told De Telegraaf: "A disappointing result? No way. We had seen this coming a bit and I want to congratulate Ferrari on the victory and thank McLaren for their sportsmanship. I appreciate that, and it makes our situation a bit better."

‘Marko laughs at 'McLaren's sportsmanship';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29865...rand-prix.html

[Fortitude]

Sainz: Ferrari F1 upgrades delivered ‘genuine’ Monza race with McLaren.
Carlos Sainz was enthused that Ferrari’s Formula 1 latest upgrades put it in a “genuine” race with McLaren at the Italian Grand Prix as team-mate Charles Leclerc won.
3 Sept 2024
Jack Oliver Smith
Motorsport Week

The Spaniard, who finished fourth behind Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, rued his prospects coming undone when he lost a tow on the McLaren cars when they pitted. However, Sainz spoke of his encouragement at how his team’s cars were able to keep a race pace that enabled his team-mate Leclerc’s victory.

“Today we were in a genuine race with the McLarens,” he said, adding: “I think obviously here the tow makes a bit of a difference and I think I lost the tow around Lap 15 when they boxed and I could really feel how slow you become without it.”

“Then they form a train of three cars and I was in the middle of nowhere with Lewis in my tow following my pace but I genuinely think today we were in the race with the McLarens which was great to see.”

‘Genuine race with McLaren’;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-with-mclaren/


Sainz explains Monza 'miracle' after reaching 'crisis' point
Carlos Sainz has outlined why he reached "crisis" point during the Italian Grand Prix and how he "miraculously recovered" from it.
3 Sept 2024
Samuel Coop & Aaron Deckers
RacingNews365

Carlos Sainz has detailed the "crisis" he dealt with during the Italian Grand Prix, as Charles Leclerc stormed to victory in front of the Tifosi. The Spanish driver, revealed that whilst Ferrari's rivals were peeling in for their second round of pit stops, his Pirellis reached a critical point, which they "miraculously recovered" from.

Whilst Leclerc triumphed, 29-year-old said there was a period of the race when he did not believe the aggressive, and ultimately race-winning, one-stop strategy would be possible. "For some reason, Charles [Leclerc] and I went through a phase of high degradation on the hards [tyres].”

"And then they miraculously recovered, and that's what allowed us to go to the end. But there was a point when the others started boxing that the tyre was really in crisis, but then the last 10 laps, the tyre recovered, and we could keep a decent pace to the end."

Monza 'miracle' after reaching 'crisis';

https://racingnews365.com/sainz-expl...g-crisis-point


RACE RECAP: CHARLES TRIUMPHANT, CARLOS FOURTH
1 Sept 2024
Ferrari - Official Site
Start. Charles and Carlos are fourth and fifth on the grid, with the Monegasque moving up to second thanks to a mistake from George Russell and the battle between the two McLaren drivers at the Roggia chicane. Oscar Piastri leads followed by Leclerc, Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz up to fourth.
Lap 13. Lando Norris pits for Hard tyres promoting Carlos to third.

Lap 14. Charles pits and rejoins eighth.
Lap 15. Piastri pits, Carlos leads.
Lap 19. The Spaniard also pits, rejoinig sixth behind his team-mate.
Lap 23. Max Verstappen comes in for another set of Hards. Charles is fourth, Carlos fifth.
Lap 24. Now Sergio Perez pits for tyres so Leclerc is third, Sainz fourth.

Lap 32. Norris switches to another set of Hards. Charles and Carlos are second and third.
Lap 39. Piastri pits. Leclerc leads from Sainz.
Lap 43. Piastri passes Carlos.
Giro 47. Norris passes Carlos.
Finish. Piastri closes on Charles but the Monegasque holds on for the win! Carlos fourth.

‘RACE RECAP’;

https://www.ferrari.com/en-GB/formul...prix-2024-race


‘It shows you’: Carlos Sainz sends brutal message to Lando Norris after Oscar Piastri’s overtake at Monza
3 September 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Sainz and Norris are close friends but the Spaniard has warned the two-time race winner about Oscar Piastri. The Australian youngster pulled off a brilliant move to take the lead of the race and was only denied victory by Ferrari’s superior tyre management and strategy.

Sainz believes that Norris has to be careful of the 23-year-old while Martin Brundle believes Piastri has no interest in helping Norris win the championship at this stage of the season. Sainz was asked about the first-lap incident between the two McLaren drivers and said: “It shows you that there are no friends here and that you cannot trust anyone.”

‘It shows you’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/car...take-at-monza/


Carlos: “Monza is always unique”
1 Sept 2024
Ferrari - Official Site

Monza 29 August 2024: Carlos Sainz was very much in demand on Thursday in the Monza paddock, as the Spaniard prepares for a strong showing in what will be his last Italian Grand Prix in Scuderia Ferrari HP colours. Last year’s poleman spoke about the unique feelings generated at this track.

“For sure, for us Ferrari drivers, this is the most demanding weekend of the year, but you can’t help getting carried away by the passion and support we feel from our supporters whenever we race here. We can rest on Monday, but for now we will enjoy it.”

“Monza is always unique”;

https://www.ferrari.com/en-GB/formul...24-media-sainz


Sainz details breakdown in negotiations with Ferrari over F1 deal
27 Aug 2024
Taylor Powling
Motorsport Week

Sainz has revealed that he was engaged in conversations with Ferrari over an extension when Hamilton elected to activate a break clause in his deal to change teams. “I was in the middle of negotiations with Ferrari,” Sainz told Sky Sports F1 at Zandvoort last weekend. “Everything seemed to be going in the right direction and suddenly these news arrived to me and it was completely unexpected.”

“Everything is actually going smoothly, and I’m that’s why I was so convinced and so sure I was gonna continue there. But a seven-time world champion decided that he wanted to go to Ferrari. And in that case, I couldn’t do nothing against it, and I had to accept it very quickly.”

“Completely unexpected”;

https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/...-over-f1-deal/


Spanish bank sponsor to end "$60m" deal with Ferrari when Carlos Sainz exits
Major sponsor to part ways with Ferrari
1 Sept 2024
James Dielhenn
Crash.Net

Santander will end their sponsorship of Ferrari at the end of this season. The Spanish bank’s exit coincides with Carlos Sainz’s departure from Ferrari. The driver from Spain will head to Williams in 2025, when he is replaced by Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari.

Santander’s claim that they will ‘continue to work with a range of partners’ might open the door to an alliance with Williams, where Sainz will be driving.

‘Carlos Sainz exits, Santander will end their sponsorship of Ferrari’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105440...os-sainz-exits

[Fortitude]

Hamilton 'hoping to have more pace' in Monza after P5 finish.
Mercedes Lewis Hamilton was "hoping to have more pace" in Monza after finishing 5th in the 2024 Italian Grand Prix.
1 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

‘More pace';

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/ha...08162751021208


Hamilton left to rue personal performance: 'Would've beaten a Ferrari'
2 Sept 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Lewis Hamilton was left regretting his own personal qualifying performance as he believes more would've been possible in the Italian Grand Prix. Though Hamilton did express how Mercedes were missing 'one or two tenths' in race pace on Sunday. The Brit eventually finished fifth, behind only McLaren and the race-winning team Ferrari.

What did Hamilton lack in Italy? In a conversation with the media present in Italy, including GPblog, Hamilton was asked what was lacking. "My qualifying performance at the end yesterday," was Hamilton's first thought before also looking at the Mercedes car. "And then just race pace. We had more degradation and just generally lacking one or two tenths in the race."

"I probably could have finished ahead of one Ferrari if I had been further ahead [on the starting grid]," Hamilton said, insisting a P4 or better was on the cards for the seven-time World Champion. "We just didn't have the pace. We have to go and look and try to understand why. Also because we looked better on Friday. We almost got slower through the weekend. Or others got faster. Or we were light [on fuel in practice] and they were heavy," Hamilton concluded.

‘Left to rue personal performance’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29883...rand-prix.html


Hamilton stumped by Mercedes performance in Ferrari pursuit
Lewis Hamilton has said he does not know why Mercedes lacked race pace at Monza, with the British driver consigned to a lonely drive to fifth.
1 Sept 2024
Samuel Coop
RacingNews365

Lewis Hamilton has admitted he does not know why Mercedes were less than competitive than Ferrari and McLaren at the Italian Grand Prix. "Ultimately, I think we didn't have the race pace today. I'm not quite sure why. I think even if I started further ahead [it] would have been hard," Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. "Even if I was ahead of [the] Ferraris, they would have come out ahead. They just had more pace than us, but they had an upgrade this weekend, and we didn't - it's just how it goes.”

"There will be a race, hopefully, that we will have an upgrade and the others won't and we'll be stronger, maybe, but it's very, very fine, small margins between all [of] us and unfortunately, today, we just didn't have the pace... so it was inevitable they would be quick compared to us. I wish we were closer and more in the fight, but onwards and upwards."

‘Stumped by Mercedes performance’;

https://racingnews365.com/hamilton-s...errari-pursuit


Hamilton expecting more upgrades and 'performance' from Mercedes
2 Sept 2024
Olly Darcy
GPblog.com

For Lewis Hamilton, he would have been expecting better than P5 at the Italian Grand Prix. After topping the timing sheets in FP2 and FP3, showing some great pace around the 'Temple of Speed', he was disappointed in qualifying, leading to some harsh criticism of himself. He moved up one spot to P5 come the race's end, but he hoped for more. However, coming into the next race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, the seven-time world champion believes Mercedes will come with some updates.

Hamilton 'hoping to fight for a win again' with new updates: Speaking to the paddock after the Grand Prix at Monza, which included GPblog, Hamilton said some updates for the W15 are in the pipeline: "We definitely have [some updates], yeah. There's definitely some performance to come over the course of the next few races. We’ll find out when we get there. We do have small bits, but I don't know if we have anything huge coming. But hopefully, we have some more performance."

‘Expecting more upgrades and performance';

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29896...-mercedes.html


F1 News: Mercedes fear they have “lost pace”
Sept 2, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Speaking post-race, Andrew Shovlin (trackside engineering director) discussed the state of play at Mercedes: “We didn’t have the pace to be able to both manage the tyres and keep up with our competitors ahead… It looks like we’ve lost some pace relative to our rivals since the summer break. We will go away and investigate why that is and what we need to do to put in a more competitive showing in Baku.”

Recent upgrades from Ferrari and McLaren have given Mercedes somewhat of a headache. The factory in Brackley will need to respond with upgrades of their own to keep up, although they can still be satisfied with their general progress in 2024. Unlike the front-running teams, the German constructor is not in contention for either Championship this season. Instead, Mercedes will focus on maximising results this year and establishing a good platform to fight at the front throughout next season.

‘Lost some pace relative to our rivals’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...-summer-break/


Lewis Hamilton finds one positive for Mercedes at Italian GP
1 Sept 2024
John Smith
Total Motorsport

“The only positive to take away is that we have good reliability, but everyone around us did too,” Hamilton told Sky Sports F1. “We didn’t have race pace today, I’m not sure why. Even if we had started further forward, it would have been hard. Even if we were ahead of the Ferraris, they would have come out ahead, they had more pace than us.”

‘Good reliability’;

https://www.total-motorsport.com/f1-...24-italian-gp/


Hamilton's negative attitude comes under scrutiny from Mercedes boss Wolff
2 Sept 2024
Matt Gretton
GPblog.com

Lewis Hamilton has been negative about his own performance at the Italian Grand Prix. At the weekend, when Mercedes announced Hamilton's replacement (Andrea Kimi Antonelli), the Brit suggested Mercedes deserved better in qualifying and suggested the young Italian might do a better job than him. Toto Wolff has assessed this negative attitude.

"I think the great characteristic of a champion is to first look at himself and say, ‘What did I do wrong?’ And I think that's what he's doing. He's trying to find where he can improve, what he could have done better and where he's lost their performance," Wolff said in a conversation with GPblog and others. "He's been very strong, and was a role model for George, and even for Kimi. It's something that is important for the team. But the greatest of all time are very critical," Wolff highlighted.

‘Great characteristic of a champion’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29885...-mercedes.html


F1 News: Toto Wolff Highlights Lewis Hamilton’s Self-Criticism Following Italian Grand Prix
Sept 02, 2024
Jake Faigus
Athlon Sports

Toto Wolff is focusing on Lewis Hamilton's self-criticism following the Italian Grand Prix, highlighting it as a key trait of a champion. He said as much to Sky Sports F1 after qualifying. Hamilton acknowledged that qualifying has been a challenge for him recently and mentioned that he would be reflecting on his performance for the next few hours.

"I lost a tenth and a half through Turns One and Two, and then a tenth in the last corner. No one to blame but myself. Qualifying has been my weakness for a minute now and I can't figure it out. I will be kicking myself for the next couple of hours but I need to move forward. We have a good race car, the team have done an amazing job this weekend, they really have.”

He also hinted that his future teammate, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, might help fill the gap for Mercedes next season. "The car felt better than last race and the team deserve better. Maybe they will get that with Kimi [Antonelli]." He added: "It was absolutely ridiculous from my side and completely unacceptable. I'm just not very good at qualifying, simple as. It is unbelievably frustrating but I will keep working. That's all I can do."

‘Lewis Hamilton’s Self-Criticism’;

https://www.fresnobee.com/sports/art...mainstage_card

[Fortitude]

Horner praises Verstappen: 'Even with this car you can see his talent'.
Verstappen can no longer compete for wins with the car he currently has, he said in Monza. The development of the RB20 has gone in such a wrong direction that the world champion is repeatedly talking about where they could improve now.
4 Sep 2024
Cas van de Kleut
GPblog.com

Horner sees Verstappen's talent in RB20. So it seems that Verstappen is suffering a bit more from the recent problems than Perez. However, according to Horner, he still sees Verstappen's qualities in the RB20.

"I think that on a low downforce circuit, and this type of circuit in particular [like Monza], it's highlighted that even Max with his talent, he's been able to. You can see flashes of it, like in Q2. As soon as you've got a bit of a balance, bang the lap time was there. But theoretically, putting new tyres on should always be quicker than old tyres," the team principal explained.

‘Horner praises Verstappen’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29921...rent-rb20.html


Max Verstappen ‘should be concerned’ with Red Bull urged to act in ‘losing streak’ warning
4 Sep 2024
Michelle Foster
PlanetF1.com

Banging his steering wheel in Monza before declaring both titles are “not realistic”, David Coulthard says Max Verstappen has just cause to be concerned having not won any of the last six races. Verstappen and Red Bull had a troubled weekend at the Italian Grand Prix where the reigning World Champion was almost seven-tenths of a second shy of pole position before bringing his RB20 home in sixth place.

A notable misstep in Hungary forced the team to dial back on their upgrades with Red Bull now in a race to figure out exactly where they went wrong. But while Marko says they made a breakthrough on Saturday that allowed them to take a decision on how to move forward, today the team is facing the loss of the Constructors’ Championship and perhaps even the Drivers’.

“At the moment, both championships are not realistic,” he told the media, including PlanetF1.com, at Monza. Coulthard says he has every right to be worried. “He should be concerned,” he told Channel 4 after the race. “I think the whole team are concerned. They haven’t built on the upgrades. Unlike McLaren who have found performance, they haven’t moved forward. They need to unlock the performance in that car.”

‘Red Bull urged to act’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/max-ve...streak-warning


Horner: Verstappen “not panicking” over recent RB20 form
SEPTEMBER 4, 2024 ·
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

Christian Horner insists that Max Verstappen is “not panicking” and remains sully supportive of Red Bull Racing despite the recent drop-off in the form of the RB20. Verstappen has made it clear in public that he’s unhappy with how races have gone recently, having finished a distant sixth in Italy last weekend.

However Horner says that the Dutchman is still fully behind the ongoing efforts to turn things around for the remainder of the season. “What’s really impressed me with Max is how he’s really engaged in this process,” said Horner.

“He’s not panicking. He’s working with the engineers. He’s explaining very clearly where the issues are. He’s putting the time and effort in. He was in early [on Sunday] morning, he was on Zoom calls last week, he’ll be on the simulator before the next race, and he’s really working hard at this. And I think he’s shown great maturity as a World Champion, the way he’s working with the engineering group.”

“Not panicking”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/04/...ent-rb20-form/


Downbeat Verstappen says the RB20 'won't be fantastic' in Baku
4 Sep 2024
Jeroen Immink
GPblog.com

Upcoming races will be on the streets of Baku and blood-hot Singapore. Verstappen knows what to do then. "I think at the moment on most tracks, it's mainly the balance. Ride can be improved on every single track naturally. But on the street circuits, that really comes out more," the three-time world champion revealed.

What does Verstappen expect from upcoming street races? Last year in Singapore, Verstappen experienced his worst race (P5), and the Dutchman does not expect miracles this year either. "At the moment, we are not the fastest car even on a normal track. So I don't expect Singapore to suddenly then be fantastic. It's not going to like swap around in Singapore for us," Verstappen said.

‘Does not expect miracles’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29913...singapore.html


Red Bull braced for F1 2024 title defeat as boss goes all in on Max Verstappen – report
04 Sep 2024
Oliver Harden
PlanetF1.com

Red Bull have reportedly conceded defeat to McLaren in the F1 2024 Constructors’ Championship, with a senior figure quoted as saying a fourth title for Max Verstappen is “all that counts now.”

Verstappen went on to sound the alarm after the race, telling media including PlanetF1.com that both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championship will slip away from Red Bull if the situation is not rectified. He said: “At the moment, both championships are not realistic.”

“We have to turn it around and it’s not easy to do that very quickly, and then if we can put that on the car, then it becomes more driveable. I’ve said a lot and now it’s up to the team to come with a lot of changes with the car, because we basically went from a very dominant car to an undriveable car in the space of six to eight months.”

‘Sound the alarm’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/mclare...eat-title-race


Horner details Verstappen role in Red Bull misery
Red Bull has suffered a downturn in form over the last handful of races and is searching for a fix to return to race-winning ways.
4 Sept 2024
Fergal Walsh & Aaron Deckers
RacingNews365

Speaking directly after the Italian Grand Prix in which Verstappen finished sixth after qualifying seventh, Horner confirmed Verstappen had been in early that morning. Horner added: "He was on Zoom calls last week, [and] he’ll be on the simulator before the next race.”

“He's really working hard at this. I think he's shown great maturity as a world champion, the way he's working with the engineering team.” Horner hailed Red Bull's engineering team as he backed it to lift it from the struggles it has been enduring.

“Nobody likes the situation we're in at the moment,” he said. “Nobody is happy with it. We've got to work really hard to turn it around. But the one thing this team has is strength in depth and talent. And we'll come back.”

‘Shown great maturity as a world champion’;

https://racingnews365.com/horner-det...ed-bull-misery


Max Verstappen makes RB20 engine power admission as Red Bull problems stack up
3 Sep 2024
Henry Valantine
PlanetF1.com

Max Verstappen revealed he was unable to run his engine at full power during the Italian Grand Prix at the weekend, due to an issue. Verstappen was seen hitting his steering wheel in frustration after an uncharacteristic six-second pit stop from Red Bull on Sunday, as part of what became a frustrating weekend for the Dutch driver.

To compound those concerns, he revealed he was unable to run at full power in the race at Monza. “In terms of position, yes, but I think how we approach the race, not,” Verstappen told Sky F1 when asked if he got all he could out of the Italian Grand Prix.

When asked if that engine issue had hampered his afternoon, the three-time World Champion replied: “It would have still been a bad race, but at least maybe you are a bit more competitive. Because like this we were in no man’s land basically, doing our own race.”

‘Unable to run engine at full power’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/max-ve...sue-italian-gp

[Fortitude]

George Russell takes blame for costly Lap 1 “misjudgement” at Italian GP.
"I got some damage, I think, at the next corner with Max. Who knows what could’ve been."
1 Sep 2024
Connor McDonagh
Crash.Net

George Russell has taken full responsibility for his costly “misjudgement” on the opening lap of the Italian Grand Prix. Russell sustained damage on the opening lap of the race at Monza when recovering from his off-track moment at Turn 1.

The Mercedes driver took to the run-off area and rejoined in close proximity to Max Verstappen. Reflecting on the opening lap at Monza, Russell said: “It was mainly the first lap that cost me. It was a misjudgement on my behalf. Oscar came across sharply. He braked earlier than I expected.”

“When I reacted and hit the brakes, the whole car was locking up. I had to avoid him, to not crash. I got some damage, I think, at the next corner with Max. Who knows what could’ve been. But I don’t think we could’ve kept up with the McLarens. Charles was fast too.”

“Misjudgement”;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105451...ent-italian-gp


George Russell 'really quite disappointed' with P7 in the 2024 Italian Grand Prix
1 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Russell doesn't believe Mercedes would have had the pace to challenge Ferrari and McLaren after finishing P7 in the Italian Grand Prix.

‘Disappointed';

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/ge...08380958568090


George Russell blames Mercedes controversy on 'not eating enough pizza'
George Russell is navigating a tough run of form with Mercedes.
Sep 2, 2024
Harry Smith
Daily and Sunday Express

Speaking to supporters in the Italian Grand Prix fan zone, Russell and Hamilton were asked if they had eaten any of Italy’s most famous culinary export. Hamilton responded: “We’re a bit too heavy right now, we can’t have pizza. We’re a bit fat at the moment. Last race, he was heavy and I was even heavier.”

Russell then joked: “Yeah in Spa I didn’t have my pizza so I was underweight and disqualified last week. [Then in] Zandvoort I had a lot of pizza and we were heavy and slow, so I need maybe half a pizza!” This produced a laugh from Hamilton, who added: “It’s true! We were overweight!”

‘Pizza’;

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/f1-a...ilton-Mercedes


Russell thought he would “go airborne” during Perez battle
SEPT 2, 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

The Mercedes driver damaged his wing on the first lap and after a long early stop for a replacement he had to make his way back up. He was fighting Perez for seventh place when the Mexican made it hard to get by. “I thought I was about to go airborne when he was squeezing me at 340,” he said when asked by this writer about the fight.

“Hard racing, and at least glad to make up one position. It was right at the very, very limit.” Asked if he would speak to the Red Bull driver he said: “There’s nothing to say. We didn’t crash at the end of the day. And I got past him. Half a centimetre more, and it could have been a different story.”

“The sport is a bit strange at the moment, with how Red Bull have lost so much pace. Ferrari seemed to be struggling in Zandvoort and all the races prior, but then they were so quick on Sunday in Zandvoort and this whole weekend. So I don’t really know.”

“Go airborne”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/02/...-perez-battle/


Toto Wolff gives verdict on fierce Russell v Perez battle ‘at the very limit’
1 Sep 2024
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

While the sort of incident that can happen, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff believes Sergio Perez moved “late” on George Russell at Monza. Russell in his Mercedes found himself in combat with the Red Bull of Perez for P7 at Monza, a move which Russell ultimately completed, though not without some drama going into the opening chicane.

Wolff felt that Perez had moved “late” against Russell in the braking zone at the first chicane. “I’m trying to be objective, and with the George incident on Turn 1, it’s probably racing that can happen,” he said. “But with Checo, that was a move under braking. Was there enough gap, when the gap was tiny? But still, the move came late.”

‘At the very limit’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/toto-w...-russell-monza


Wolff: Mercedes W15 has lost “quite a chunk” of performance
SEPT 3, 2024
Adam Cooper's F1 Blog

“It was better than Zandvoort,” said Wolff when asked by this writer about the Monza race. “But we are quite a chunk of from pre-summer performances. I think we scored a podium in five races or six races and three victories, two on merit.”

“And we don’t seem to be playing there at the moment, in the front. And when you’re on the back foot pace-wise, then obviously you’re in a bit of a no-man’s land in terms of strategy. So it’s good that we have a little bit of time to analyse that.”

Wolff admitted that tyre management in races, something that worked so well for Russell at Spa, is the key weakness at the moment. “I think we’re able to extract a single lap, which is in principle, good news,” he said. “But then the balance isn’t, in a way, good enough to keep the tyres happy for the race.”

“Chunk of from pre-summer performances”;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/03/...f-performance/


George Russell's seat at Mercedes is not safe amid the team's pursuit of Max Verstappen, says Nico Rosberg
2 Sept 2024
SkySports

George Russell's Mercedes contract expires at the end of the 2025 F1 season; the Silver Arrows have just signed teenage star Andrea Kimi Antonelli to partner Russell next year; Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has repeatedly expressed his desire to bring Max Verstappen to the team

However, 2016 world champion Rosberg said: "George is not safe at all because Toto still wants Max. He will try again for 2026 because 'give up' does not appear in Toto's vocabulary. If Max does become available - and I do think it's a possibility - then it is a shootout between George and Kimi next year.”

"It's a lot of pressure on George as he has everything to lose. He should be the one ahead at the team internally, because Kimi is 18 and he's completely new and in a full-pressure situation, so it's not an easy situation for George."

"George is not safe at all”;

https://www.skysports.com/f1/news/12...s-nico-rosberg


‘Right on the edge’: Why George Russell made subtle ‘dig’ at Kimi Antonelli during Monza press conference
4 Sept 2024
Rory Mitchell
F1 Oversteer

After Kimi Antonelli crashed 10 minutes into his FP1 debut at Monza, the 18-year-old experienced first-hand how things can change in the highly pressurised world of F1. Antonelli was taking over from George Russell in the session and caused significant damage to the W15, which impacted Mercedes’ run plan for the rest of the day. Russell missed nearly 30 minutes of FP2 while the team continued with repairs, while the team was cut short on the amount of spares they had for the new specification parts.

During the drivers’ press conference over the weekend, Russell made a ‘bit of dig’ at Antonelli over the crash according to journalist Alex Kalinauckas when speaking on the Flat Chat podcast. George Russell blames Andrea Kimi Antonelli for lack of spare parts. F1 teams are quite limited in the amount of parts they are able to produce in a season due to the cost cap, while crash damage is also included in that calculation.

Drivers have lost their seats before due to crashing too often, including Mick Schumacher and most recently Logan Sargeant at Williams. Russell made a subtle hint that Mercedes might have to get used to these setbacks in the early stages of Kimi Antonelli’s career. “Mercedes is in for a real challenging year next year where Antonelli is absolutely rapid, but he crashes a lot. I could totally see it,” said Kalinauckas.

‘Bit of dig’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/why...ss-conference/

[Fortitude]

'Really disappointed' Sergio Perez comments on finishing P8 in the Italian Grand Prix.
Perez comments on holding up George Russell from Max Verstappen to maximise returns for the Red Bull in the 2024 Italian Grand Prix.
1 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

'Really disappointed';

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/re...07258109871195


Sergio Perez: Verstappen now “in the same boat” as me
September 2, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Verstappen has complained extensively about the RB20’s handling. The Dutchman is unhappy with his car’s drivability, a theme that has become increasingly prevalent in F1 circles.

However, for Sergio Perez, his teammate’s current difficulties are what he has experienced for most of 2024: “We basically were slow and high degradation,” he said post-race in Monza.
“I really feel like I’m in the same boat as I’ve been in for the last eight, ten races. But now, all of a sudden, Max has come to similar issues. So, yeah a little bit of a confusion there. But yeah, it’s clearly in the data where the problem is.”

“In the same boat”;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...me-boat-as-me/


Perez struggles with similar problems that 'Verstappen suddenly has'
4 Sept 2024
Ludo van Denderen

Sergio Perez has been telling it all season: the Mexican finds it difficult to handle Red Bull Racing's RB20, and as a result, he cannot perform as he hopes. Consequently, the vice-world champion has not yet won this season, unlike Max Verstappen. However, his Dutch teammate has been waiting for another win since the Spanish Grand Prix. According to Sergio Perez, Verstappen is currently running into the same problems he has been struggling with throughout 2024.

“I really feel like I’m in the same boat as I’ve been in for the last eight, 10 races but now all of a sudden Max has come into similar issues so yeah, a little bit of a confusion there but it is clear in the data where the problem is,” Perez stated to F1TV. What the problem is? That lies in the balance of the car, those involved within Red Bull said one by one at Monza last weekend.

‘Sergio Perez has been telling it all season’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/29919...denly-has.html


Verstappen now ‘in the same boat I’ve been in for 10 races’ says Perez as he opens up on Red Bull’s Monza struggles
3 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Sergio Perez started and finished the Italian Grand Prix in eighth position, and bar an entertaining duel with George Russell, didn’t have much to show for his afternoon in a Red Bull that was proving a handful around the Temple of Speed.

Much like his team mate Max Verstappen, Perez struggled with the balance of his RB20, finding tyre wear higher than expected and failing to make a two-stop strategy work to his favour. He started on the hard compound, before running that again, moving onto the mediums late on.

“[I’m] really disappointed,” he admitted afterwards. “I was expecting it to be difficult but not this bad. We basically were slow and had high deg [degradation], especially on the medium. I compromised my race a little bit I think to keep George [Russell] behind, but that worked quite well for us because we were able to hold George behind for a little bit and in the end he came really close to Max, so I think it made a difference to the team in terms of points we secured today.”

‘Hold George behind for a little bit and in the end he came really close to Max’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...AlZ0KNGVAXyp0U


Perez is confident that Red Bull has "no more questions" regarding its current issues
3 Sep 2024
Balazs Szabo
F1 Technical

Pushed on to comment on Red Bull's current issues, Perez sounded a positive note, claiming that he hopes that the Milton Keynes-based outfit will return to top form in the near future.

"I am very confident the Team here at track and back at home have the solution, we have produced great cars in the past and there is no reason why we cannot get back on track.”

"We have no questions now, we know the problem. Given it is all related to balance, if we can find a fix then we can switch it around but for now, it’s head down until we find the answer,"

‘Perez sounded a positive note’;

https://www.f1technical.net/news/25409

[Fortitude]

Alex Albon comments on 'intense' Italian Grand Prix.
Alex Albon brings home points for Williams after finishing P9 in Monza as "the tortoise wins the race".
01 September 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

‘P9 in Monza’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/al...06246141817635


‘Been quite strong’: Ted Kravitz explains why Alex Albon was so angry at Monza despite scoring points
2 September 2024
Ben Evans
F1 Oversteer

Williams will be delighted that for the third time in the 2024 Formula 1 season, they’ve left a race weekend with points. Going into nearly any other race weekend, a new driver on the grid would be the biggest focus in the press and Franco Colapinto was a key talking point.

Why Alex Albon was so angry with Williams during the Italian Grand Prix. Relaying what he heard between Albon and the Williams pit wall, Kravitz said: “So, you’ve mentioned Alex Albon fighting with Kevin Magnussen, Albon’s been reminded by his engineers that Magnussen has a ten-second penalty still to be served.”

“Albon’s saying, well what do you want me to do, race him or just stay here? I can probably get onto Alonso in P8, now Albon’s been quite strong on the radio, accusing the team of being indecisive once again, that’s something we’ve heard before from Albon, isn’t it? A case of I used to be decisive but now I’m not so sure at Williams.”

‘What do you want me to do?’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/ted...coring-points/


Alex Albon: Williams have more upgrades in the pipeline
September 3, 2024
Jaden Diaz-Ndisang
Last Word On Sports

Alex Albon showed why he is such an indispensable asset to Williams by taking points. Although the Monza circuit is usually a favourable track for Williams, delivering a result when you are expected to (as McLaren are showing) is no easy feat.

Thanks to the team’s lighter and upgraded version of the FW46, Albon is optimistic for what remains of 2024: “We’re on a slow burner, and we’re kind of just about getting into it. We have an upgrade, another one planned for hopefully a couple of races.”

“Let’s hope we can try and catch Alpine in the Championship, that’s our target. I think the last few races have proved we can have a fairly good car, capable of Q3, so we’ll keep at it.”

‘More upgrades in the pipeline’;

https://lastwordonsports.com/motorsp...-the-pipeline/


'The tortoise wins the race' – Albon reflects on ‘intense' Italian GP as Colapinto assesses his debut performance
02 September 2024
Formula One - Official Site

Alex Albon has reflected on an "intense" Italian Grand Prix where the "tortoise won the race" as he bagged valuable points for Williams in P9. Rookie team mate Franco Colapinto also scored an impressive P12 in his debut F1 race to mark a strong showing for the Grove squad.

His consistent drive meant that he was promoted to ninth place and received an important two points after the Dane’s penalty was added. Albon also faced his battles behind as he was closely pursued by Fernando Alonso towards the end of the race, but the Williams man managed to stay ahead on 36-lap-old hard tyres.

Williams had opted for a one-stop strategy at Monza – like winner Charles Leclerc – and, while it meant the pair had to manage their tyres carefully, it helped them finish strongly with Colapinto 13 seconds away from scoring points.

'The tortoise wins the race';

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...cTpOfWnvPXX2zl


Italian GP: Fantastic race result for Williams Racing
September 2 2024
Williams Racing
WilliamsF1 Supporters

The Williams Racing Team would come away from the 2024 Italian GP with a successful outcome with the Alex Albon achieving a 9th place finish after a one pit stop strategy. It was not the easiest of outcomes as Alex still suffered from graining of his tyres that he had to manage. Alex had finished 10th on the road but another driver would receive a time penalty seeing Alex move forward.

Alex Albon: "It was a good race and I’m happy. I felt like we did a decent job, whilst also struggling quite a lot with the tyres. The front left was always a problem throughout so I had to manage this, and I couldn’t really stop the graining, which was always a problem for us. In the end, we did a good job of surviving while relying on Kevin’s penalty to get P9.”

“Haas had us beat this weekend on race pace, so we still have some work to do, but with another upgrade to come, hopefully, we can get back into this point-scoring rhythm for the remaining races of the season. Also, well done to Franco on a great race, he did an impressive job on his first weekend in F1."

"It was a good race and I’m happy

https://www.sportnetwork.net/main/s107/st206331.htm

[Fortitude]

Magnussen 'doesn't know what is happening' with penalties but finishes P10.
Kevin Magnussen "happy" with Haas's race but confused about penalties given to him. Points still come his way finishing in P10.
1 Sept 2024
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

‘Finishing in P10’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/ma...04934052377377


Magnussen “completely confused” by penalty that led to race ban
SEPTEMBER 1, 2024
adamcooperf1.com

Magnussen will miss the Baku race. Kevin Magnussen will serve a one-race ban and miss the Azerbaijan GP after picking up two penalty points in Monza and bringing his points total for the past year to 12. He crossed the line in an encouraging ninth place and the best runner outside the top four teams, but was demoted a spot to 10th.

“Yeah, frustrated about the penalty, I don’t understand it at all,” he said when asked by this writer. “Flat out, just completely confused. Me and Gasly raced hard into Turn 4. We had slight contact, we both missed the corner, came back on track again. No damage to either car, no consequence to the race of either of us.”

“And I get a 10-second penalty. Then lap one, Ricciardo and Nico, Ricciardo put Nico in the grass at 300km/h completely destroyed Nico’s race. Massive consequence, and damage to Nico’s car, and he gets a five second penalty. Where’s the logic? I just don’t get it.”

‘Frustrated about the penalty’;

https://adamcooperf1.com/2024/09/01/...d-to-race-ban/


Martin Brundle joins increasing criticism of FIA race ban for Kevin Magnussen
04 Sep 2024
James Dielhenn
Crash.Net

List of voices criticising the decision to ban Kevin Magnussen is getting longer. “This seems harsh,” Sky Sports broadcaster Martin Brundle insisted. “Points should only be applied to very serious driving misdemeanours, and otherwise the time penalty itself should suffice.”

Fernando Alonso also chimed in: “Penalty points, as we’ve discussed many times, should be for dangerous driving, something that is a danger for the sport and for the others. “A couple of those points that he accumulated, I’m not sure… I don’t have the list here. But sometimes it’s just pit lane, white line, unsafe releases, all these kind of things.”

“I mean, this is part of racing.” Alonso said about Magnussen’s incident at Monza: “This is a drive-through. This is a five-second penalty. “I understand the racing penalties, but the safety penalties are a little bit harder to understand.”

‘Increasing criticism’;

https://www.crash.net/f1/news/105459...evin-magnussen


Gasly prepared to take drastic stewards action over Magnussen F1 ban.
Pierre Gasly has defended Kevin Magnussen and tried to see if his penalty could be reversed.
2 Sept 2024
Jake Nichol & Ian Parkes
RacingNews365

Pierre Gasly has revealed he would have tried to defend Kevin Magnussen to F1 stewards after he was handed a ban in the Italian Grand Prix. Frenchman Gasly stuck up for the Dane Magnussen. "I hope they can revert on that, because it will definitely be unfair," Gasly told media including RacingNews365 when told of Magnussen's ban.

"I [would]be happy to [defend Magnussen], and [I had] a drugs test so wasted an hour, but [I would have] seen what I could have done as it would be very unfair for the incident that it was. I was a bit surprised [about the penalty], as he tried, it was a bit of wheel-to-wheel contact and I didn't lose any time in the end. I am surprised."

‘Surprised’;

https://racingnews365.com/gasly-prep...s-after-f1-ban


The upside for Haas from Magnussen's controversial race ban
Sep 6, 2024
by Edd Straw
The Race

An unexpected driver ban is rarely a positive for a Formula 1 team, but Haas will benefit from Kevin Magnussen's absence from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in terms of its preparations for 2025. Ollie Bearman's premature Haas debut will inject extra momentum to what is already a rolling start to their relationship.

It's an unusual situation for Bearman given he shouldn't be under any undue amounts of pressure, certainly less than were this his F1 debut. He's already stashed significant credit with his outstanding performance for Ferrari at Jeddah after stepping in for Carlos Sainz from FP3, and while he will be determined to repeat that impression he has already shown himself and the world that he can cut it in F1.

He's already under contract for 2025, so in that regard he has nothing to prove. What's left is just the usual need for any driver at this level to prove themselves every time they get in the car, which is onerous enough but won't be added to by other baggage. You could argue there's the hope that a great performance might lead to the seat being given to him for the rest of the season, but it's been made clear Magnussen will be back in Singapore so that is off the table.

‘The upside’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/h...n-ban-f1-race/


Haas confirm Bearman to replace Magnussen in Baku
September 6, 2024
James Phillips
FormulaNerds

The American team was widely expected to confirm the British youngster for Baku after Magnussen crossed the threshold for a race ban. It is the first race ban awarded by the FIA in 12 years since Romain Grosjean was sidelined after causing a first-corner crash in Spa. In a statement released by Haas, Bearman says his experience in Jeddah with Ferrari will help with the preparation of being thrown into an unexpected race weekend:

“It’s definitely more of a challenge stepping in to race as a reserve driver, with limited prep-time and so on, but I’m in the fortunate position of having done it earlier in the year with Scuderia Ferrari, so I can at least call on that experience”.

‘Haas confirm Bearman’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/ha.../?nowprocket=1