Grand Day for Gasly: AlphaTauri Driver Wins Memorable Italian GP

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A race course celebrated for its age and speed, the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza is now known for a surreal 2020 Italian Grand Prix. After 53 laps, series of misadventures by Formula 1's currently established front-runners and some opportune placement by other entrants led to a very different podium topped by a surprising yet popular victor. 

The grid for the Italian Grand Prix assembled somewhat routinely for a 2020 Formula 1 with Lewis Hamilton on pole and Mercedes AMG teammate Valtteri Bottas starting beside him. Without any awareness for what will occur in this year’s Monza event, the race started with Hamilton shooting out to a major advantage. Bottas, on the other hand, struggled immediately on the opening lap of the Italian Grand Prix falling to sixth place by the time the black Mercedes completed a full circuit around the track. The weak start by the #77 Mercedes AMG allowed the two McLaren cars of Carlos Sainz Jr. and Lando Norris, Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Daniel Ricciardo driving for Renault to make early gains. 

Photo Credit: LAT Images/Mercedes AMG

On lap 19, the race was slowed by a safety car period when the #20 Haas F1 Team machine driven by Kevin Magnussen stopped along the edge of the track ahead of the pit road. A power unit issue was cited as a reason for Ferrari-powered race car. Initially appearing as a simple recovery of a stopped vehicle, the safety car appearance ultimately reshaped the entire race. Entering the Parabolica turn just as the Mercedes-AMG GT R safety car was being deployed, leader Lewis Hamilton and the Mercedes AMG team attempted to use the more than 14-second gap to make a pit stop. However, due to the full-course caution period, pit road was closed meaning Hamilton’s stop was against the rules. Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi was also caught pitting as the start of the safety car period. Both drivers were given a 10-second stop-and-go penalties in their pit stalls eventually being served on lap 30. 

Viewed as a home race for Scuderia Ferrari F1 team, the Monza, Italy circuit is seen as a venue of heightened pride where the squad has an additional incentive to perform. Unfortunately, this year’s grand prix performance for Ferrari was another situation compounding what has been an overall dreadful 2020 season; in fact, it required a very short time for the afternoon to go badly for the Ferrari team. After just six laps, the #5 car of Sebastian Vettel encountered massive brake system failure on track requiring to German to make an uneasy trip to pit road and retirement from the Italian Grand Prix one lap later. Charles Leclerc’s Monza race also came to a premature end only in more dramatic fashion than his teammate. Shortly after the race resumed under green after the safety car period to retrieve Kevin Magnussen’s car, the #16 Ferrari lost control through the turn 11 Parabolica corner and slammed hard into the barriers on lap 25. Escaping major injury, Leclerc was unable to defend his 2019 win at the grand prix.

Photo Credit: Ferrari S.p.A.

The recovery of the crashed Ferrari and the repair to the track’s safety barrier required a red flag on the Monza track that span almost 30 minutes. A second standing start would be employed on lap 28 in order to send the race back to green with all teams were allowed to place new tires on their cars prior to the event’s resumption. Well-timed early pit stops by Pierre Gasly and Kimi Raikkonen elevated them up the racing order. Having not pitted in the Italian Grand Prix up to the second safety car period, Lance Stroll and the #18 Racing Point was granted the enviable grid position of starting alongside the Mercedes AMG of Lewis Hamilton who had yet to serve his penalty. Similar to Valtteri Bottas’ start in the second grid spot, Stroll has a terrible launch dropping from second to fifth place near the end of lap 28. 

From third place on the grid, the AlphaTauri in the hands of Pierre Gasly obtained second place just prior to Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes attending pit road to serve his stop-and-go penalty. As Gasly maintained the lead of the Italian Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz Jr. would eventually pass Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo for second place. Although the Alfa Romeo Racing team was able to place Raikkonen in a runner-up position for lap 30, the red and white #7 car slid down the standings and would finish the race in the 13th place spot. 

Into the final laps, Sainz began to close on the leading AlphaTauri closing within a one-second on lap 52. With a gap of 0.415 seconds, Pierre Gasly held off the McLaren driver to win the 2020 Italian Grand Prix. 

Photo Credit: Pirelli & C. S.p.A.

The first-ever Formula 1 win for the 24-year-old Frenchman, Pierre Gasly comes in his third full season in the sport that included last year split between Red Bull Racing and Toro Rosso (now known as AlphaTauri). Ecstatically taking his first podium at the Brazilian Grand Prix last season, Gasly was on top of the world. The French driver was equally as emotional celebrating victory in the 2020 Italian Grand Prix. Immediately following Pierre Gasly’s win, the news was greeted with resounding positivity from his fellow drivers and other teams. Rebranded from Toro Rosso this year to advertise energy drink company Red Bull’s fashion line, the AlphaTauri is now the third team that has found victory in the 2020 season in addition to Mercedes AMG and Red Bull Racing.  

Photo Credit: Pirelli & C. S.p.A.

One week after a Belgian Grand Prix where he wasn’t even able to start the main event due to an exhaust issue, Carlos Sainz Jr. narrowly missed scoring his first Formula 1 victory in Monza. “It’s obviously impossible to be too disappointed with P2, but I wanted that win!” Sainz stated in a post-race release from McLaren. Both McLaren drivers managed to complete the 53-lap race high in the finishing order as Lando Norris crossed the line in fourth place. McLaren believed a certain win may have existed for their team if not for the second safety car and red flag period that would have broke a winless streak stretching back to 2012.

Crossing the line in third place, Lance Stroll and Racing Point captured his second career podium finish in Formula 1 at the Italian Grand Prix while some analysts believe a higher position or perhaps a win would have been possible on the day. The 21-year-old Canadian cited considerable wheel spin on the second standing start as hindering a better result. The finish by Stroll is the first podium for the Racing Point team since the ownership consortium led by Lawrence Stroll purchased the operation from Force India in the middle of 2018.

Photo Credit: Pirelli & C. S.p.A.

Unable to improve his position while in traffic, Valtteri Bottas settled for fifth place in the Italian Grand Prix. Used to leading, the usually dominant Mercedes AMG race cars appeared humbled. Dropped to the back of the running order after attending to his stop-and-go penalty, Lewis Hamilton would put on a worthwhile show as he charged back into the top 10. By the end of lap 53, the Brit was able to salvage a seventh place result. Hamilton still holds a commanding 47-point lead in the 2020 drivers’ standings after eight races. Bottas is now second place in the overall standings aided by Max Verstappen dropping out of the race after lap 30 when his Red Bull Racing car suffered a power unit problem. 

Renault F1 Team drivers finished favourably in Italy with Daniel Ricciardo taking sixth while Esteban Ocon took the chequered flag in eighth place. The final two top 10 spots in the Italian Grand Prix were claimed by AlphaTauri’s Daniil Kvyat and Racing Point’s Sergio Perez. 

Finishing outside of the points, the Williams Racing team’s showing at Monza carried weight for being the final event that the organization would have found Sir Frank Williams as well as deputy team principal Claire Williams serving in an official capacity. Sold to an American-based investment firm, Williams Racing will continue to feature the team’s past glory including the name of its founder. Canadian Nicholas Latifi crossed the finish line at the Italian Grand Prix in 11th place while George Russell achieved a 14th place run. 

For what will be the third weekend in a row where Formula 1 cars will compete, the Tuscan Grand Prix on Italy’s Mugello Circuit will provide a unique, new competitive venue for the tour with a race scheduled on September 13th. 

2020 Formula 1
Italian Grand Prix
Race Results

A Meaningful Beginning: Rosberg Wins At Monza Following Hamilton's Troubled Start

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

The second half of the 2016 Formula 1 season is well underway as Monza, Italy hosted the 14th race for world tour of open wheel racing's most powerful vehicles. Racing one week after Formula 1 competitors competed in Belgium completing a nearly month-long break for the summertime, the Italian Grand Prix serves as the final European round for the year. Autodromo Nazionale di Monza guaranteed a high-speed finale on the continent consisting of 11 turns and a 5.793-kilometer circuit length.

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA

What was not promised was whether which one of the Mercedes AMG teammates could prevail in the 22-car field. In qualifying, defending event winner of the previous two years Lewis Hamilton stormed to pole at Monza by a convincing margin over Nico Rosberg. Embroiled in a championship fight with one another, the Mercedes AMG teammates have traded the championship point lead early this summer. Following Rosberg's barn-burning start to the 2016 Formula 1 season, Hamilton re-entered his true form at Monaco. The British driver eventually leapfrog his German corporate rival holding a 19-point lead on Rosberg into the mid-season break. Through past seasons, many analysts of Formula 1 would hand an advantage to Lewis Hamilton based on his instant success reflected by a championship earned in only his second full season. This year appears to be a different scenario as Nico Rosberg has been showing himself to be more resilient and a formidable match to Hamilton.

Lined up for the 2016 Italian Grand Prix, the two Mercedes AMG race cars stood at the front of the grid. As Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg were positioned side-by-side, the light signals summoning the official start of the 53-lap race flicked off. It was through that initial stage at Monza where one Mercedes AMG car would rise and the other would fall almost instantly as Hamilton launched slowly. By the end of the first corner, the pole sitter of the Italian Grand Prix had fallen from 1st to 6th place as the pair of Ferraris as well as the Williams-Mercedes of Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull Racing's Daniel Ricciardo found a way by the #44 Mercedes AMG race car. In contrast, Nico Rosberg engaged in a fine start taking a strong lead into the first lap.

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO PER PIRELLI MEDIA

While the race in Italy would not have the same magnitude of collisions as what was experience last week at Spa-Francorchamps, some coming-togethers were part of the 53 circuits. Deep in the field for the first lap, Felipe Nasr's Sauber and the Renault race car of Jolyon Palmer made contact through the Variante Ascari complex of the Monza course. Fighting for 18th place at the time, Nasr's rear tire touched the front tire of Palmer's car resulting in secondary contact damaging the Renault's front wing and the tire of the Sauber. Neither drivers was able to complete the Italian Grand Prix becoming of just four competitors who didn't make it to the finish (joined later by mechanical failures on the vehicles of Daniil Kvyat and Pascal Wehrlein).

While Nico Rosberg lead the way for Mercedes AMG, Lewis Hamilton had to regain ground from the poor start. Hamilton quickly took fifth place and would later overtake Bottas' Williams-Mercedes but his rear-mounted Pirelli soft compound tires quickly wore out through his charge back to the front. Both Mercedes AMG race cars opted for a single pit stop plan and were the only vehicles that finished in the top-10 using the strategy. Since other competitors chose a two-stop tire plan, this led to a majority of runners pitting between lap 13 to 16. Following the opposing team's pit stops, Lewis Hamilton was promoted to second place in the running order.

After an eventful start, the Mercedes AMG team settled into a typical pace. Cruising to a second consecutive victory, Nico Rosberg took his seventh win of the season at Monza with a 15.070-second advantage over teammate Lewis Hamilton. Citing the race as a perfect outing for him, Rosberg stated in post-race team transcript, "It means so much for me to win here at Monza. The crowd were unbelievable over the entire weekend and especially during the podium ceremony. A momentum-building set of races for the German driver, he now closes to within 2 points of his Mercedes AMG teammate Hamilton in the current points standing. Settling for second, Lewis Hamilton had been the Italian Grand Prix winner during past two seasons.

A country containing perhaps the most energized and passionate devotion to Ferrari (understandable since the company operates in the nation), the final spot on the podium was a sentimental achievement. Scuderia Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel held onto a third place spot he earned in qualifying. Vettel was followed across the finish line by teammate Kimi Raikkonen. Still hunting for a first win for the 2016 Formula 1 season, a third and fourth place result for Ferrari did provide a worthwhile reason to celebrate. Mentioning engine upgrades to the Ferrari, Vettel was proud of the effort at Monza but acknowledges challenges as the organization has been working to break into the win column for 2016 saying, "This podium here, it’s not the Adriatic sea, it is the sea of tifosi.. We had a rough season, we had high expectations, we have put ourselves on high pressure, we have also done mistakes, but the most important thing is that we stay a team, that we stay together."

Photo Credit: Ferrari S.p.A.

the 5th and 6th place spots swapped positions from the starting lineup with Daniel Ricciardo taking fifth while Valtteri Bottas captured sixth. Max Verstappen had a quiet grand prix at Monza concluding 53 laps in seventh place with the second Red Bull-TAG Heuer machine.

Overall, the finishing results of the Italian Grand Prix maintained a remarkable amount of stability to the starting order. Positioned at a season-high starting spot with the Haas F1 Team, Estaban Gutierrez would be filtered out of the top-10 over the course of the 53 laps in Italy. Gutierrez would finish 13th placing two positions behind his teammate Romain Grosjean in a similarly prepared Ferrari-powered race car. With the Haas F1 Team out of the points, the second Williams Martini Racing car of Felipe Massa would enter the top-10. Taking 9th place, Massa joined fellow Williams-Mercedes pilot Bottas in the points. Scoring constructors' points with both cars, Williams Martini Racing has claimed at least one point in all but one grand prix in 2016 (the British Grand Prix in Silverstone was the only non-point scoring event for the team). Force India also enjoyed a third-straight double-point finish with drivers Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg. Perez grabbed 8th place while Hulkenberg took the final available point in the Italian Grand Prix finishing order in 10th.

Although to McLaren Honda team were not able to crack the top-10 for the Italian Grand Prix, the mid-marker team does leave Autodromo Nazionale di Monza with a small, discrete victory. Fernando Alonso set the fastest lap of the race with a 1-minute, 25.340-second lap time achieved on a set of supersoft Pirelli tires. Two-time winner at the circuit in previous seasons, Alonso finished 14th in the Italian Grand Prix.

The last race on the 2016 Formula 1 schedule takes place in Singapore. On September 18th, the unique nighttime street race at the Marina Bay Circuit will provide an illuminating next round.

2016 Formula 1
Italian Grand Prix
Race Results

Pos # Car # Driver Team Engine

1 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
2 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
3 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari Ferrari
4 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari Ferrari
5 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull TAG Heuer
6 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
7 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull TAG Heuer
8 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes-Benz
9 19 Felipe Massa Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
10 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India Mercedes-Benz
11 8 Romain Grosjean Haas F1 Team Ferrari
12 22 Jenson Button McLaren Honda
13 9 Esteban Gutierrez Haas F1 Team Ferrari
14 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda
15 55 Carlos Sainz Jr Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
16 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari
17 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault Renault
18 31 Esteban Ocon Manor Mercedes-Benz
19 28 Pascal Wehrlein Manor Mercedes-Benz
20 26 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
21 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault Renault
22 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber Ferrari

Lewis Hamilton Is Primo In Italy With Monza Pole

Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG

The 2016 Formula 1 series presses into second race of two consecutive weekends at historic European race circuits as 22 drivers and cars prepare for this Sunday's Italian Grand Prix. Known for high speeds and low downforce, the current Autodromo Nazionale di Monza course is a 5.793-kilometer, 11-turn challenge tests race cars as well as the physical and mental endurance of drivers. Appearing uninterrupted as the host track for the Italian Grand Prix since 1981, the Monza track's continuous presence on the Formula 1 calendar is second only to the Monte Carlo road course hosting the Monaco Grand Prix.

Following last weekend's eventful grand prix in Belgium, all the drivers have returned to their cockpits including Renault's Kevin Magnussen. Another aspect of the 2016 Belgian Grand Prix was also a dominant outing for Nico Rosberg who drove his Mercedes AMG race car from the pole position to the win allowing the German to gain 10 points and pull within 9 points of current Formula 1 Drivers' points leader and teammate Lewis Hamilton. Ahead of the 53-lap main event at Monza, Hamilton has taken the first measure to alter the trend of the previous race by taking pole.

On a hot, Italian track where ambient temperatures exceeded 30 degrees Celsius, Lewis Hamilton reversed his luck of a last place starting spot in Belgium with the first-place position after Italian Grand Prix qualifying. With a 1-minute, 21.135-second top time in Q3, Hamilton his 56th career Formula 1 pole and tied Ayrton Senna for all-time poles by a single driver at Monza with a fifth successful effort. The Brit enters the Italian Grand Prix as the defending winner of the previous two events. Hamilton will be joined on the front row by his Mercedes AMG teammate and main 2016 rival Nico Rosberg. Clocking a lap 0.478 seconds slower than the #44 car of Hamilton, Rosberg's #6 out-powered a pair of Scuderia Ferrari race machines.

With this weekend's grand prix taking place in Ferrari's home country, pressure on the team is quite high. Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen are both continuing to fight for the team its first victory in 2016. Vettel was just under a tenth of a second quicker than teammate Raikkonen for the preferential placement behind Lewis Hamilton on the second row. Due to a controversial three-wide mishap in the Belgian Grand Prix, both Ferraris as well as the Red Bull-TAG Heuer car of Max Verstappen weakened from possible podium contention. Ferrari will have some of the strongest of a brand loyal crowd cheering for the constructor destined to dwarf the Mercedes-Benz faithful.

Williams Martini Racing's Valtteri Bottas starts 5th in Italy placed well ahead of his teammate Felipe Massa in 11th. Prior to the Italian Grand Prix, Massa confirmed that this season will be his final Formula 1 effort. In sixth place, Daniel Ricciardo's Red Bull Racing car was measured as only 0.001 seconds slower than than Bottas' Williams-Mercedes. Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull-TAG Heuer starts 7th at Monza after a week following the Belgian Grand Prix where the young driver faced criticism from current and former Formula 1 pilots. Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg both cracked the top-10 in Italian Grand Prix qualifying behind Verstappen.

Monza is known as a place where surprises can occur. The 2008 victory of Sebastian Vettel in a Toro Rosso-Ferrari in the Italian Grand Prix serves as a recent, potent example. Not as triumphant and disrupting as Vettel's first Formula 1 win, the Haas F1 Team enjoyed claim to a first-time accomplishment for the rookie organization in qualifying. Seventh fastest on the final Q2 charts, Esteban Gutierrez drove his Ferrari-powered Haas F1 Team machine into the Q3 round. Gutierrez would ultimately place at the bottom of the Q3 time trial order but still mounted a milestone effort.  

The 2016 Italian Grand Prix is scheduled for 2 PM local time (8 AM Eastern time).

2016 Formula 1
Italian Grand Prix
Starting Grid

Pos # Car # Driver Team Engine

1 44 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
2 6 Nico Rosberg Mercedes AMG Mercedes-Benz
3 5 Sebastian Vettel Ferrari Ferrari
4 7 Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari Ferrari
5 77 Valtteri Bottas Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
6 3 Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull TAG Heuer
7 33 Max Verstappen Red Bull TAG Heuer
8 11 Sergio Perez Force India Mercedes-Benz
9 27 Nico Hulkenberg Force India Mercedes-Benz
10 9 Esteban Gutierrez Haas F1 Team Ferrari
11 19 Felipe Massa Williams F1 Mercedes-Benz
12 14 Fernando Alonso McLaren Honda
13 28 Pascal Wehrlein Manor Mercedes-Benz
14 22 Jenson Button McLaren Honda
15 55 Carlos Sainz Jr Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
16 26 Daniil Kvyat Scuderia Toro Rosso Ferrari
17 8 Romain Grosjean Haas F1 Team Ferrari
18 12 Felipe Nasr Sauber Ferrari
19 9 Marcus Ericsson Sauber Ferrari
20 30 Jolyon Palmer Renault Renault
21 20 Kevin Magnussen Renault Renault
22 31 Esteban Ocon Manor Mercedes-Benz