ROUND 16: 🇮🇹 Italy
FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2024
Circuit stats
- Circuit name: Autodromo Nazionale Monza
- First Grand Prix: 1950
- Number of laps: 53
- Circuit Length: 5.793 km
- Race Distance: 306.72 km
- Lap record: 1:21.046 Rubens Barrichello (2004)
- 2023 winner: Max Verstappen
Look I don’t want to sound like a downer and I’m happy for Charles and all, but it’s hard not to have severe frustration at McLaren as your main takeaway from this race. They’re being complete idiots and I simply don’t understand it. Piastri should not be attacking Norris on lap one, he should protect him. Team orders suck, but you have to be ruthless if you want to be champion. But maybe they just don’t care about winning?
I’m at least happy Albon got two good points, even though it was thanks to Magnusson’s bone-headed penalty as Haas successfully undercut him. Shame Alonso missed out on a point by 19 hundreds, but AM just don’t have the pace right now so can’t complain.
Yeah, McLaren is not acting like a front running team at all. I mean they could’ve easily hung 1 or both cars out there and responded to Ferrari pitting.
As for team orders … The balance between a far reaching WDC and keeping both drivers happy enough and just getting the WCC, touch call. I don’t envy Stella/Brown for having to make it.
I don’t see a world where Max doesn’t win the WDC, even with these pace differences
It’s still possible, but Lando needed to actually capitalise on this weekend. Even the extra three points if they had decided to swap places with Piastri could end up being the decider, never mind the win. I think you’re right Verstappen ends up hanging on to the championship, and it will be all due to McLaren incompetence and stubbornness. Such a frustrating season when it should really be a terrific chase to follow. Does my head in.
Yup, squandered chance is the name of the game
I really don’t see how Piastri with the ultimate “#2” driver in Webber as his manager is ever going to roll over and help set a status quo where Lando is set to be #1. It’s something that McLaren through Senna and Prost back in the day knows well and the winner in the end is the driver that takes it all. As an Australian I’m very happy for Piastri to have the balls to assert this, he’s maybe not going to win this WDC but it’s all positive for the future!
Totally agree. It’s a bad idea for the team (could lose his talent) and for Oscar to play this game. If it was 10 points between max and Lando? Sure, play wingman. For this? Nah