Italian Grand Prix 2017: Preview and Weekend Times

Opening hours

Friday September 1th

Free 1: 10:00-11:30 (Sky Sport F1 HD – Rai Sport/Rai Sport HD)

Free 2: 14:00-15:30 (Sky Sport F1 HD – Rai Sport/Rai Sport HD)

Saturday September 2th

Free 3: 11:00-12:00 (Sky Sport F1 HD – Rai Sport/Rai Sport HD)

Qualifying: 14pm (Sky Sport F00 HD – Rai 1)

Sunday September 3th

Race: 14pm ̶ 00 laps ̶ 53km (Sky Sport F306,720 HD – Rai 1)

Previous race

The Belgian GP was in Ferrari's "black book" - as is Monza - but despite this, and despite a perfect weekend from Mercedes and Lewis Hamilton, the Ferrari and the German stood out very well in the Ardennes, bringing took home a well-deserved second place, also maintaining the championship lead, with a 7 point advantage over the Briton. On the podium with the two contenders for the world title was, once again, that funny guy Ricciardo, who quietly took home his fifth trophy of the season. A distracted Kimi Raikkonen took fourth place, after having lost 10 seconds stop & go for having ignored the yellow flags, mind Bottas, until yesterday still realistically in contention for the title, was mocked like a beginner with just over ten laps to go, finishing fifth and widening the gap towards the leader Vettel at -41.

Predictions from F1GrandPrix.it

Monza, Italy. Last European stage of the season. The circuit where everyone dreams of winning at least once, a bit like being able to drive for Ferrari. The world championship challenge could not have had a more exciting and adrenaline-filled setting, with the two contenders for the title so close, when there are only seven races to go and every single point is worth gold. In the Temple of speed, and the Ferrari fans, it will be open war between Brackley and Maranello, with no holds barred. The track, this time too, on paper favors the Silver Arrows and their new power unit specification but, after what we saw in Belgium, with a Ferrari still up to par with its rivals even on the time table, it is not far-fetched to hope in a red heart on the top step of the podium, as well as at his feet. If this doesn't happen, it will at least be important to contain the damage, while waiting for Singapore, where Ferrari will be able to return to playing on an equal footing.

Circuit

Name: Monza racetrack

Place: Monza/Biassono/Vedano/Lesmo, Monza and Brianza, Lombardy, Italy

Construction: The Monza Autodromo was built in 1922 in just 110 days, and included a layout made up of the roads already existing in the park, plus a high-speed ring, to form a figure-eight circuit. Back then it could boast of being the third permanent circuit in the world. Over the years the track has undergone numerous interventions and modifications, the high-speed ring was demolished and rebuilt in 1954, and the chicanes that still exist today were added. To reduce the very high speeds that were reached on this track, the permanent chicanes of the Roggia, the Ascari Variant and the First Variant, were built in 1976. In 1994, 1995 and 2000 the first variant was modified, the Roggia escape route was asphalted and the entire pit structure was modernised. In recent years, the escape route of the First variant and that of the Parabolica have also been partially asphalted. Despite these measures to slow down the cars and give the drivers more safety, Monza remains the fastest track in the championship, where very high speed peaks are reached, and it is not uncommon for dangerous accidents to occur even on the straight.

Distance per lap: 5,793km

Number of curves: 11, seven on the right, four on the left

Direction of travel: clockwise

Technical data:

Characteristics of the Track: Monza remains an old-fashioned track and always retains an unmistakable charm. The engine is kept at maximum for approximately 67% of the lap and this track has the highest hourly average of the entire championship, which is around 245 km/h. The engine cycles throughout the duration of the GP are over 800.000. There are approximately 51 gear changes per lap, 3.213 for the entire race.

Brakes:

Rubber:

DRS zone: On the main straight, between Turn 11 and Turn 1, with detection point before Turn 11; from the Serraglio to the Ascari variant, between turns 7 and turn 8, with detection point before turn 8.

Previous Editions

2014 edition: the entry of the Haas team for the 2016 season is announced, while the Williams confirms the Bottas – Massa duo also for the following season. Friday free practice: in the first session Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) precedes Jenson Button (McLaren – Mercedes) and his teammate Nico Rosberg. In the second session, however, the German is the fastest, preceding the Anglo-Caribbean and the Ferrari of Kimi Rӓikkӧnen by 60 thousandths. Finally, in the third free practice on Saturday morning, Hamilton was still the fastest in front Fernando Alonso and Valtteri Bottas. Qualifying: the first three rows are occupied entirely by Mercedes-powered cars, with Lewis Hamilton grabbing yet another pole by beating Rosberg by 2 tenths of a second, second row for Bottas and Massa on Williams, the Ferraris of Alonso and Rӓikkӧnen seventh and twelfth respectively. Race: bad start for the poleman who is immediately overtaken by Rosberg, Magnussen and Massa. The young pilot McLaren However, on the fifth lap he gave up his position first to the Brazilian and then to the Englishman. On Rosberg's ninth long lap at the first chicane, Hamilton recovers from behind, also passing Massa and gets under his teammate, leader of the race. Meanwhile, from behind Bottas, who also had a less than brilliant start, instead has an excellent race pace and at the 18th lap he is fifth, behind Magnussen - he will overtake him after another three laps. In the meantime, there was a fight behind, between Button and Alonso, with the Englishman who, by delaying the pit stop by one lap, managed to stay ahead of the Asturian. Leadership changes at 29^a round: Rosberg goes wide again at the first braking point and this time he is passed by Hamilton, who will never give up the lead of the race again. On the same lap Alonso was forced to retire due to an electrical problem with the engine. Heated battle again between Magnussen and Bottas, with the Finn once again having the upper hand and maintaining fourth place. At the end, Ricciardo made a nice comeback who managed to get up to fifth place (he had started ninth). After 53 laps Lewis Hamilton went on to win for the twenty-eighth time in his career, finishing second Nico Rosberg and third Felipe Massa, on the podium after almost a year and a half.

2015 edition: in FP1 on Friday Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) achieved the best time, trailing his teammate Nico Rosberg by half a second, third was Sebastian Vettel with Ferrari. It is curious to note how the times are one second higher than the previous year, with less performing cars. Even in FP2 the top three positions did not change, with Nico however only a few thousandths behind. Saturday: a few drops of rain fell during the night and in the morning the drivers opted for intermediate tyres, with Hamilton ahead of Vettel and Rosberg. Several drivers also fell back due to the change of some components (Alonso, Sainz Jr., Ricciardo, Kvyat, Verstappen and Button). Qualifying: Lewis Hamilton earns the forty-ninth career pole ahead of the two Ferraris of Räikkönen and Vettel, then Rosberg, Massa, Bottas, Pérez, Grosjean Hülkenberg and Ericsson. Race: At the start Räikkönen has a problem with his car and proceeds very slowly, being overtaken by the entire group of single-seaters. Lewis Hamilton maintains the lead of the race, ahead of Sebastian Vettel, who in turn precedes the two Williams. Nico Rosberg, penalized by Räikkönen's car remaining stationary in front of him, is only sixth. The Englishman firmly maintains the lead of the race, while behind Iceman he launches into an interminable comeback, even making a long run, without consequences. Meanwhile, Rosberg is behind the two Williams cars and decides to return to the pits first, followed slowly by everyone else: he will gain two positions over Massa and Bottas. Kimi also returns on lap 29 and regains his lead, passing Ericsson, Hülkenberg and then Ricciardo (also author of a splendid race), finally Pérez for fifth position. On lap 50, however, Rosberg had to retire after his engine caught fire, thus "freeing" Vettel. Hamilton then goes on to win (Grand chelem for him) ahead of Vettel and Felipe Massa, which repeats the same result as the previous year.

2016 edition: on the eve of the race weekend, Bernie Eccestone and the president of the ACI, Angelo Sticchi Damiani, signed the long-awaited renewal of the Italian GP, ​​while Felipe Massa announced his retirement at the end of the season, after a 14-year career in F1. On Friday morning the two Ferraris chased the two Mercedes, with Rosberg setting the fastest lap; in the afternoon the teams' positions did not change, but this time it was Hamilton who preceded his teammate. In Free Practice 3 on Saturday the result of the top four is a carbon copy of Friday, with Hamilton also winning his fifth pole position on the Brianza track in qualifying. Rosberg will start alongside him, while Vettel and Raikkonen will start behind them. Bottas' Williams takes fifth place, ahead of Ricciardo and Verstappen in the Red Bull. Perez, Hulkenberg and Gutierrez complete the top five rows. Race: when the traffic lights went out, Rosberg immediately took off his poleman and teammate, and the Ferraris, Bottas and Ricciardo also immediately took advantage of a "sleeping" Hamilton, with the Briton dropping to sixth place. An immediate retirement for Nasr and Palmer, involved in an accident. On the sixth lap Hamilton has already overtaken Ricciardo, and shortly after also Bottas, while Rosberg already has a 6 second advantage over Vettel. After 20 laps the gap has increased to 14 seconds, with Hamilton in second place - the two Mercedes, as well as the Haas, have yet to make the first pit stop - ahead of Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Ricciardo, Grosjean, Perez , Verstappen and Massa. Perez passes Grosjean and goes up to seventh, Ricciardo closes in on Bottas for fifth place. On lap 25 pit stop for Rosberg, Hamilton follows him on the next lap. Rosberg regains the leadership and Hamilton returns to fourth behind the two Reds, who however will have to stop a second time. On lap 28 I retire for Wehrlein Manor. On lap 34 Vettel stopped again, rejoining fifth behind Ricciardo. One lap later it's Kimi's turn. With 12 laps to go Rosberg remains leader, followed by Hamilton, Vettel, Kimi, Bottas, Ricciardo, Perez, Verstappen, Massa and Hulkenberg. On lap 47 Ricciardo manages to snatch fifth place from Bottas. Nico Rosberg wins his first victory in Monza. Followed by Hamilton, Vettel, Kimi, Ricciardo, Bottas, Verstappen, Perez, Massa and Hulkenberg.

Best edition for Authors:

1988 edition: in a season dominated by McLaren powered by Honda and with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost at the wheel, the only two drivers to be able to compete for the title thanks to the enormous advantage they have accumulated over the rest of the group, the unthinkable happens. During Saturday's qualifying, obviously there was no story: the man from pole, the Brazilian, gave three tenths of a second to his teammate to take tenth of the season out of twelve, then followed at a distance by the two Ferraris of Gerhard Berger (the only one other than Prost to take less than a second) and the unforgettable Michele Alboreto, third row for the two Arrows of Cheever and Warwick. Race: Senna firmly holds the lead ahead of the Frenchman and the red duo, nothing seems to be able to change the fate of the race. But on lap 35 the first twist, with Prost having to say goodbye to the race due to problems with the Japanese engine. The two from Ferrari continue their race without a hitch behind an elusive Senna. But then the withdrawal of the second McLaren driver came like a bolt from the blue: during the lapping phase of Schlesser (who replaced the injured Mansell at Williams) there was a misunderstanding and the two came into contact, with the impossibility of restarting. This happened with just two laps to go and allowed the two Ferraris to achieve an unexpected one-two which sent the public who had come to see the Prancing Horse's single-seaters into raptures. It all happened less than a month after the death of Enzo Ferrari. Perhaps a final gift from the Drake; we like to think so.

Best Readers Edition:

1996 edition: on the eve of the Grand Prix Frank Williams declared the end of the relationship with Damon Hill at the end of the season, due to the incomprehensibility between the two parties and the significant increase in salary wanted by the driver; he would be replaced by Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Friday: perhaps also thanks to a new 7-speed gearbox, Ferrari with Schumacher set the fastest lap in Free Practice, with a time of 1'24''399, followed by Mika Hӓkkinen (McLaren Mercedes) at +0.068, and Gerhard Berger (Benetton – Renault) at +0.430. On Saturday at the end of qualifying, the two Williams - Renault dominated, as in almost the entire season, with Hill on pole ahead of teammate Jacques Villeneuve (+0.317), third was Schumacher flanked by Hӓkkinen, then Coulthard with the other McLaren , Alesi, Irvine, Berger, Brundle and Barrichello close the top ten. Race: at the start the two Williams had a terrible start but Villeneuve still managed to join Hill, who in response took him to the outside, making his car taste the grass. Jean Alesi took advantage of all this and, having started 6th, had an excellent start and managed to take the lead, although it lasted very little time. In fact Hill caught him after a lap and a half and overtook him at the second Lesmo corner; in the meantime Hӓkkinen gained third position against Villeneuve. On the second pass the Canadian was involved in an accident against the barriers along the second chicane, which irremediably compromised his race and relegated him to seventh at the end of the race. Some tires from these barriers also bounced on the track hitting the car of the innocent Coulthard, who was then forced to retire. Two laps later it was Alesi who made the same mistake, but emerged with the car unharmed, while the other McLaren did the damage, having to return to the pits to replace the nose. Finally, on lap 6 it was Hill who made the mistake of cutting the chicane too far, ending up against the aforementioned ones and having to retire after a disastrous spin. In the midst of all this confusion, Alesi found himself first with Schumacher second to him: the German began his personal run by progressively reducing the disadvantage and moving in the wake of the Frenchman, without however being able to overtake him due to a lack of speed along the straights. At least not until the 30th^a round, when the Frenchman entered the pits to refuel and Schumacher pushed hard, setting, among other things, the fastest lap. The accumulated advantage allowed the German to make the pit stop and still leave with a large advantage, which he maintained until the end of the 53 scheduled laps, sending the over 100.000 fans who gathered when he crossed the finish line into raptures. It was the second victory in a row that season and the first at Monza for Ferrari since 1988.

RECORD

Test lap: 1:20.089 – R Barrichello – Ferrari – 2004
Race lap: 1:21.046 – R Barrichello – Ferrari – 2004
Distance: 1h14:19.838 – M Schumacher – Ferrari – 2003
Driver victories: 5 – M Schumacher
Team victories: 18 – Ferrari
Driver pole: 5 – J Fangio, A Senna, L Hamilton
Pole team: 19 – Ferrari
Best driver laps: 4 – L Hamilton
Best team laps: 19 – Ferrari
Driver podiums: 8 – M Schumacher
Team podiums: 65 – Ferrari

Hall of Fame

1. 1921 J Goux–Ballot
2. 1922 P Bordino – FIAT
3. 1923 C Salamano – FIAT
4. 1924 A Ascari – Alfa Romeo
5. 1925 G Brilli-Peri – Alfa Romeo
6. 1926 L Charavel – Bugatti
7. 1927 R Benoist – Delage
8. 1928 L Chiron – Bugatti
9. 1931 G Campari, T Nuvolari – Alfa Romeo
10. 1932 T Nuvolari – Alfa Romeo
11. 1933 L Fagioli – Alfa Romeo
12. 1934 L Fagioli, R Caracciola – Mercedes
13. 1935 H Stuck – Auto Union
14. 1936 B Rosemeyer – Auto Union
15. 1937 R Caracciola – Mercedes
16. 1938 T Nuvolari – Auto Union
17. 1947 C Trossi – Alfa Romeo
18. 1948 J Wimille – Alfa Romeo
19. 1949 At Ascari – Ferrari
20. 1950 N Farina – Alfa Romeo
21. 1951 At Ascari – Ferrari
22. 1952 At Ascari – Ferrari
23. 1953 J Fangio – Maserati
24. 1954 J Fangio – Mercedes
25. 1955 J Fangio – Mercedes
26. 1956 S Moss – Maserati
27. 1957 S Moss – Vanwall
28. 1958 T Brooks – Vanwall
29. 1959 S Moss – Cooper Climax
30. 1960 P Hill – Ferrari
31. 1961 P Hill – Ferrari
32. 1962 G Hill – BRM
33. 1963 J Clark – Lotus Climax
34. 1964 J Surtees – Ferrari
35. 1965 J Stewart – BRM
36. 1966 L Scarfiotti – Ferrari
37. 1967 J Surtees – Honda
38. 1968 D Hulme – McLaren Ford
39. 1969 J Stewart – Matra Ford
40. 1970 C Regazzoni – Ferrari
41. 1971 P Gethin – BRM
42. 1972 And Fittipaldi – Lotus Ford
43. 1973 R Peterson – Lotus Ford
44. 1974 R Peterson – Lotus Ford
45. 1975 C Regazzoni – Ferrari
46. 1976 R Peterson – March Ford
47. 1977 M Andretti – Lotus Ford
48. 1978 N Lauda – Brabham Alfa Romeo
49. 1979 J Scheckter – Ferrari
50. 1980 N Piquet – Brabham Ford
51. 1981 At Prost – Renault
52. 1982 R Arnoux – Renault
53. 1983 N Piquet – Brabham BMW
54. 1984 N Lauda – McLaren TAG
55. 1985 A Prost – McLaren TAG
56. 1986 N Piquet – Williams Honda
57. 1987 N Piquet – Williams Honda
58. 1988 G Berger – Ferrari
59. 1989 A Prost – McLaren Honda
60. 1990 At Senna – McLaren Honda
61. 1991 N Mansell – Williams Renault
62. 1992 At Senna – McLaren Honda
63. 1993 D Hill – Williams Renault
64. 1994 D Hill – Williams Renault
65. 1995 J Herbert – Benetton Renault
66. 1996 M Schumacher – Ferrari
67. 1997 D Coulthard – McLaren Mercedes
68. 1998 M Schumacher – Ferrari
69. 1999 H Frentzen – Jordan Mugen Honda
70. 2000 M Schumacher – Ferrari
71. 2001 J Montoya – Williams BMW
72. 2002 R Barrichello – Ferrari
73. 2003 M Schumacher – Ferrari
74. 2004 R Barrichello – Ferrari
75. 2005 J Montoya – McLaren Mercedes
76. 2006 M Schumacher – Ferrari
77. 2007 F Alonso – McLaren Mercedes
78. 2008 S Vettel – Toro Rosso Ferrari
79. 2009 R Barrichello – Brawn GP Mercedes
80. 2010 F Alonso – Ferrari
81. 2011 S Vettel – Red Bull Renault
82. 2012 L Hamilton – McLaren Mercedes
83. 2013 S Vettel – Red Bull Renault
84. 2014 L Hamilton – Mercedes
85. 2015 L Hamilton – Mercedes
86. 2016 N Rosberg – Mercedes

Sources: Brembo, Pirelli