MONZA-. New track, new colours and renewed confidence for Ferrari who is heading to his home race in Monza.
Ferrari put in a better-than-expected performance at the Dutch Grand Prix weekend, with Charles Leclerc claiming his second consecutive podium finish while Carlos Sainz Jr. moved from tenth to fifth.
This was a surprise as they were hoping for a damage-limited weekend before making improvements to the car ahead of the Italian GP.
Although he boosted morale at a welcome moment after the team started 2024 fighting for wins but falling out of contention, Leclerc quickly calmed things down.
“I don’t let the last two races change our expectations,” he said. “We are in a difficult moment with the team, we are struggling a bit with the pace at the moment.”
“I think we understood certain things from Zandvoort… it was a good race. Spa was also good and I think we should go more in the direction of Spa here, so hopefully we will be in the battle for the podium. But I think we are not yet in a position to win.”
Ferraro has just one win in the last 13 editions of the Italian GP, after Leclerc delighted the home crowd in 2019.
Since then, the famous Italian team has only achieved two podium finishes, Leclerc’s second place in 2022 and last year when Sainz beat his teammate to third place.
NEW IMAGE
Monza is one of the oldest and most historic tracks on the F1 circuit, but this year the Temple of Speed has undergone significant changes.
In a modernisation project costing more than 20 million euros (22 million dollars), the surface was completely changed to a darker shade for the first time since 1922. The iconic edges were also modified – to the annoyance of several drivers.
“The edges have changed,” Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo said on Thursday after inspecting the track. “I did a lap of the track this morning and I can say that I was surprised because some elements lost the character of the circuit.”
WITHOUT WINNING
Verstappen finds himself in an unusual position. The three-time defending champion is winless in his last five races — his longest winless streak since 2020 — and his lead over McLaren’s Lando Norris has since been cut to 70 points with nine races remaining.
This is a contrast to last year’s Italian GP when Verstappen broke the record with his 10th consecutive win.
“I enjoy it. But would I like to win more? Sure. But I also knew that a season like last year was unrealistic,” said Verstappen.
PRACTICE
Lewis Hamilton led the way in Friday’s second practice in his final race at Monza with Mercedes before moving to Ferrari.
Hamilton was 0.003 seconds faster than Norris and 0.103 ahead of Sainz.
Verstappen – who was fastest in the hour-long opening practice ahead of Leclerc and Norris – had the 14th fastest time in the second as his best lap was affected by flags after Kevin Magnussen hit the barrier.
The first practice was also halted for almost 15 minutes after teenager Kimi Antonelli crashed his Mercedes 10 minutes into his first outing in an F1 car.
Argentine Franco Colapinto begins his first weekend as a Williams driver following the dismissal of American Logan Sargeant. Colapinto was 17th fastest.
