The Italian Grand Prix at Monza is one of several in the F1 caravan with a special status. It is Ferrari’s home, and one of the most notable tracks in the world. It is also the start of a three-race tour that includes the Tuscan GP at Mugello and a Russian Grand Prix, which might be the turning point of the entire championship. It Lewis Hamilton continues to dominate here and extends his streak of wins, we might say without hesitation that the Brit will secure his title at the end of September.
Preview
Hamilton not only won the pole-position during today’s qualifiers, but he also set a new record of the track with 1:18.887. Right from the start of today’s sessions, it was obvious that the battle for the pole will be between the two Silver Arrows, which is Hamilton and Bottas.
Two teammates were breaking each other times, and Bottas too, had a faster time than the previous circuit record. In the end, the Fin was 0.069 behind the champion, after a tight and a pretty amusing battle.
No.3 was Carlos Sainz, who was 0.808 behind Hamilton, and that pretty much tells you about the difference between Mercedes and the closest rivals, while Sergio Perez in his Racing Point finished fourth, 0.025 behind. After these guys came Max Verstappen, Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo, Lance Stroll, Albon, etc.
Ferrari experienced a catastrophe today. At their backyard, practically in their home, the Prancing Horse didn’t bet to reach the third part of the qualifying session. Charles Leclerc was 13th and Sebastian Vettel 17th, with just three drivers behind him. The current situation in the team is getting out of control, and it seems that the disputes and a bad atmosphere are damaging the reputation of this brand.
This is the first time since 1984 that neither of Ferrari’s drivers will start among the top 10 in Monza. A result like this is another hard slap in the face for the army of their fans.
Many of them are already calling for a complete change of the person in the organization. To be honest, all of them have every right to do so. For such a legendary team, this behavior and results posted this year are unacceptable.
Prediction
Mercedes has no competition right now, and they are far away from all the other teams. The battle between Hamilton and Bottas will decide this race, and if everything goes well (meaning without some mechanical issues or some other unpredictable factors), these two guys will determine the winner.
Now, we remember the most recent race where Mercedes’ leadership in the pit lane refused to allow Bottas to attack Hamilton in the final stage of the race. Because of that, we are picking the Brit to win. If he manages to overcome the starting few laps without any troubles and remains on the top spot, the Silver Arrows’ directors will protect his position. After all, he is the no.1 of this team and the best driver of today.
Odds are not high, and right now, BetXChange is giving the best offer for this pick. Check out this bookie to find other interesting odds you might be interested in.
We have one suggestion for that too. Max Verstappen to reach the podium. The Dutch driver doesn’t have such a challenging task ahead of him, with all due respect towards Sainz and Perez. If he catches the usual rhythm during the race, Verstappen will have nice opportunity to reach that third position behind the Mercedes’ vehicles.
