Italian GP - Race

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Pirelli Italian GP

Race

September 1, 2024

Charles Leclerc secures an impressive victory at the Italian GP while McLaren face setbacks

MONZA, Italy -- Charles Leclerc secured a remarkable win for Ferrari at the Italian Grand Prix, outpacing the McLarens with a well-executed race strategy.

Leclerc made one less pit stop than the faster McLarens, managing to preserve his tires until the end to the delight of Monza's tifosi.

With Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris closing in towards the finish, the crowd's cheers for Leclerc grew louder with each passing lap.

However, the most thunderous applause erupted when he crossed the finish line, marking Ferrari's first victory at their home circuit since Leclerc triumphed here in 2019.

"Mamma mia! Mamma mia!" As he crossed the line, Leclerc mentioned on the radio.

"I want to win Monza and Monaco every year and I have managed to do so. It is so, so special."

With seven laps left, Leclerc had an 11-second advantage, which decreased to 8.3 seconds with five laps to go. He ultimately finished 2.664 seconds ahead of the rest.

Despite securing the front row of the grid, McLaren's two drivers had to be content with second and third places.

Following the race, Piastri commented: "Yeah it hurts, I'm not going to lie, it hurts a lot."

Interestingly, McLaren chose not to implement team orders instructing Piastri to yield to Norris, resulting in a loss of seven crucial points in the championship battle against Max Verstappen, who settled for sixth place with Red Bull.

Although Norris did secure the additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race, the team's performance this weekend suggests that they missed a chance for greater success.

"We considered a one-stop strategy the whole race but it was not possible with the amount of [tyre] graining I had," said Norris, who had started the day 70 points behind Verstappen and hoping to gain far more.

"We are disappointed but Ferrari drove a better race."

Despite McLaren's potential to lead the constructors' championship, they remained eight points behind Red Bull at the end of the day, a significant improvement from their previous 30-point deficit.

Max Verstappen's sixth-place finish narrowed the gap in the drivers' championship to 62 points.

Carlos Sainz secured fourth place for Ferrari, while Lewis Hamilton, the future driver for the Italian team, claimed fifth place for Mercedes.

George Russell finished seventh for Mercedes, followed by Red Bull's Sergio Perez in eighth and Alex Albon earning valuable points for Williams in ninth place.

Despite a 10-second penalty for causing a collision, Kevin Magnussen managed to secure 10th place for Haas. It is anticipated that he will face a one-race ban due to accumulating excessive penalty points.

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Italian GP 2024 F1 Race Results

1. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari (1:14:40.727)

2. Oscar Piastri, McLaren (+2.664)

3. Lando Norris, McLaren (+6.153)

4. Carlos Sainz, Ferrari (+15.621)

5. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes (+22.820)

6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull (+37.932)

7. George Russell, Mercedes (+39.715)

8. Sergio Pérez, Red Bull (+54.148)

9. Alexander Albon, Williams (+1:07.456)

10. Kevin Magnussen, Haas (+1:08.302)

11. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin (+1:08.495)

12. Franco Colapinto, Williams (+1:21.308)

13. Daniel Ricciardo, RB (+1:33.452)

14. Esteban Ocon, Alpine (+1 Lap)

15. Pierre Gasly, Alpine (+1 Lap)

16. Valtteri Bottas, Sauber (+1 Lap)

17. Nico Hülkenberg, Haas (+1 Lap)

18. Zhou Guanyu, Sauber (+1 Lap)

19. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin (+1 Lap)

Ret Yuki Tsunoda, RB (+46 Laps)