Italy – Race: A first in 9 years! Ferrari triumphs in Italy with Leclerc!

The start of the Grand Prix is given and it is Hamilton who seems to get the best start. He catches up to half of Leclerc’s Ferrari but regains the advantage thanks to acceleration. At the first corner, it’s Leclerc who exits in the lead ahead of Hamilton, Bottas, Vettel, and the two Renaults.

Hülkenberg manages to overtake Ricciardo at the start and is now putting pressure on Vettel. He manages to slipstream the Ferrari on the straight and overtakes the Ferrari. 1 lap later, the two drivers swap positions again, then it’s Ricciardo’s turn to take the advantage over his teammate.

On the 7th lap, Vettel spins out on his own. He returns to the track, obstructing Stroll. There’s contact between the two drivers, and Stroll also slides off. Similarly, Stroll returns to the track, obstructing Gasly, who has to go off into the gravel. Luckily, he can get back on track. Vettel heads straight to the pit to change his wing and comes out in last place… A Ferrari is leading, a Ferrari is at the back of the pack.

One lap later, it’s Grosjean who spins and returns to the track immediately. He has to pit to change tires earlier than expected.

At the 12th lap, the stewards give their verdict and Vettel receives a 10-second stop-and-go penalty. It’s a meaningless pass through the Pitlane. A few laps later, it’s Stroll who gets a penalty: a drive-through the pit lane without the 10-second stop.

On the 17th lap, the Mercedes mechanics come out with the hard tires. Which driver is going to come in? No one. A bluff by Mercedes, which is actually banned this year.

Albon also sees himself handed a 5-second penalty for cutting the chicane.

On the 20th lap, Hamilton is the first to switch to medium tires by going through the pits while the FIA announces a 10-second pit penalty for Räikkönen.

To prevent Hamilton from gaining the advantage, Leclerc must pit. He makes a quick stop in 2.3 seconds and fits the hard tires.

Ferrari manages to maintain the advantage even in the straight line until Leclerc gets closer to Hülkenberg. The Renault doesn’t hinder Leclerc, who overtakes him. But Hamilton takes advantage in turn and gets much closer. Hamilton could attempt an overtake at Ascari but is clearly squeezed by Leclerc, forcing him to go straight. The track marshals show a black and white flag to the Ferrari driver. A flag that acts as a yellow card. In another Grand Prix, there is no doubt that the driver would have been given a penalty.

Bottas enters the pits on the 27th lap. Leclerc takes the lead again. On the 28th lap, Sainz enters the pits. One of the wheels wasn’t secured properly. He has to stop at the end of the pit lane. He was 9th with his McLaren.

By the 30th lap, Hülkenberg’s Renault enters the pit while Kvyat goes off the track, triggering a Virtual Safety Car. Ricciardo takes advantage of this to make his first pit stop almost for free.

On the 36th lap, Leclerc is slipstreamed by Hamilton, enough to put pressure on him. Leclerc makes a mistake and has to cut the chicane. He manages to stay ahead of Hamilton but zig-zags a lot, and even though he’s not in a braking zone, it’s almost dangerous behavior. Another black-and-white flag could be waved. Ultimately, no investigation is opened.

With 15 laps to go, Leclerc is still under pressure with Hamilton less than a second behind. But it’s Bottas who is closing in rapidly on the two leading drivers, taking advantage of their ongoing battles. Eventually, he won’t even need to overtake Hamilton. The Brit makes a mistake and goes straight on at the end of the straight. Bottas is now in second place, 2 seconds behind.

The radio sends him a clear message: « Hunts him now, 12 laps to go », which means, « Catch him now, 12 laps to go ».

Bottas manages to close up to 8 tenths behind Leclerc with 3 laps to go, but the Finn brakes too late at the end of the straight and loses his gained advantage.

Leclerc finally wins at Monza for Ferrari after 9 years of drought. The crowd is ecstatic! Bottas finishes second ahead of Hamilton and the two Renaults of Ricciardo and Hülkenberg. The first Red Bull is 6th with Albon followed by Perez, Verstappen, Giovinazzi, Norris, Gasly, Stroll, Vettel, Russell, Räikkönen, Grosjean, and Kubica. Magnussen, Kvyat, and Sainz are the 3 retirements.

The results of the 2019 Italian Grand Prix:

From our special correspondent in Monza.