Red Bull have launched their 2020 car, but without a special launch livery this year. The special ‘Camobull’ livery has appeared on the car for the lauchn for the past few seasons, with fans always looking forward to what weird and wonderful desing to the Energy Drink company can come up with.
Photo: Red Bull
Much like the other cars that we have seen launched so far, the car is still under development and it is unlikely that this car will be the one that will appear at the first test in Barcelona, never mind Australia.
Photo: Sky Sports
One of the most notable changes however is the narrower front nose cone, making the front of the car look a tad more slim lined. This nose cone is also more rounded that the previous cars, which helps with grid in low-speed corners.
Photo: Sky Sports
The side pods and engine covers are once again slim lined and are as compact as possible, but they do not appear to be as tight as previous iterations, potentially aiding cooling.
The car was taken for a shakedown at Silverstone, the first car to do so this season. The car is still under development, but the team always progresses well and the car provides them with a base to develop.
Ferrari have launched their 2020 challenger, with no major surprises. The car is the traditional red which will shock nobody. It does however appear to be slightly darker than its predecessor, with the orange tinge of the SF90 being replaced with the colour that is more familiar with the prancing horse.
Photo: Ferrari
The car looks rather aggressive, with most outlets describing it as ‘Extreme’. The rake of the car seems to be much larger this year, but the car is rather an updated version of the SF90 with a few subtle changes to bring it up to standard. This goes against what was speculated, that Ferrari were going to build a completely new car, but this was going to be a huge risk given that the SF90 was a race winning car.
Photo: Ferrari
Team boss Mattia Binotto has confirmed the version we’ve seen at the launch is “the one we finished with last year”, but he added that Ferrari “will not change our concept” in this area.
Binotto continued, “The starting point was the car of last year, the SF90, but certainly we have been extreme on the concept as much as we could, we’ve developed the car trying to look for maximum aero performance and maximise the downforce level, so the entire car, the monocoque, the power unit, the gearbox has been really packaged in a way to have a narrow and slim bodyshape. I think that is quite visible on it.
“We worked on the components, the suspension – it has been designed to have has had a greater durability on the racetrack for the setup.”
Mercedes have today launched their livery for the 2020 campaign, with a hint of red being added to the familiar silver that has graced the sport for over 125 years.
Photo: Sky Sports
The W11 sees red being added to the front wing along with the air box to celebrate the new sponsorship with INEOS. The livery is very similar to that of the W10 with the only difference apart from the addition of red being sharper lines along the side of the car. The red star dedicated to Niki Lauda remains on the car.
Photo: Sky Sports
The Brackley based will be hoping to retain both the driver’s and constructor’s titles come the end of the season, with the full 2020 car reveal happening on February 14.
Haas surprised everyone on Thursday by releasing official renders of their 2020 car and livery, a week and a half before it expected to be revealed. The car will be known as the VF-20 and the Amercian team will hope that this will be the car to lift the team back towards the sharp end of the grid after finishing ninth in the Constructor’s Championship last season.
Photo: Haas
The most notable change on the car is the livery, with the black and gold of ex-sponsor Rich Energy, being replaced with the grey, red and black of Haas Automation, which will be familiar to F1 fans.
Photo: Haas
Team Owner Gene Haas, said, “It’s important to me that we’re back in the mix and consistently scoring points. We certainly have the capability and we’ve proved as an organisation we can do it.”
Team Principal Guenther Steiner said, “With the regulations remaining stable into this season, it’s allowed us to improve our understanding of the car and to scrutinise ourselves more in order to find solutions and applications to channel into the design of the VF-20.”
“Last year was definitely a setback, one I would never have asked for, but you learn from such situations – we all have. Everybody at the team was forced to look at themselves and understand what they can do better.”
Photo: Haas
I am not the most technically minded of reporters, so here is a link to ‘The Race’ in which Gary Anderson gives a detail look at the technical changes with the car.
In what will come to little surprise to anyone that is keeping up to tabs with Formula One over the winter break, Racing Point will become Aston Martin Racing from 2021, ending their sponsorship and Formula One involvement with the Red Bull Racing.
Photo: Teller Report
Rumours started a while back about the possibility of Laurence Stroll purchasing a share in Aston Martin, and it has been confirmed that Stroll has purchased a 16.71% share in the British car company, with his consortium investing £182 million into Aston Martin.
The Aston Martin brand has struggled in recent years have release plans to raise £500 million emergency funding, with this deal getting the ball rolling for the luxury car brand.
The company, most famous for producing the cars used in the James Bond movies will end their Formula One involvement with Red Bull Racing at the end of the 2020 season, but both parties will continue their technological partnership in producing the Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar, which took to the track at the 2019 Rolex British Grand Prix for a demonstration run.
Photo: Autocar
This also somewhat dispels the rumours that Stroll and Toto Wolff were going to buy out the Mercedes AMG-Petronas team if they decided to withdraw from the sport at the end of the season, however there are rumours that Aston Martin Racing and Mercedes Formula One will have a closer working partnership, with the Brackley based team supplying the engines for the Silverstone based team.
Speaking to the press, Stroll said: “On completion of the £500m of fundraising I look forward to working with the Board and management team in Aston Martin Lagonda to review and improve each aspect of the company’s operations and marketing; to continue to invest in the development of new models and technologies and to start to rebalance production to prioritise demand over supply.
“I, and my partners, firmly believe that Aston Martin is one of the great global luxury car brands. I believe that this combination of capital and my experience of both the motor industry and building highly successful global brands will mean that, over time, we fulfil Aston Martin Lagonda’s potential.”
Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer said: “Mr. Stroll brings strong and proven expertise in both automotive and luxury brands more widely which we believe will be of significant benefit to Aston Martin Lagonda.”
He added “We have also announced plans to leverage a new motorsport collaboration with Racing Point to enhance the execution of the plan. I would like to thank Red Bull Racing, who we will continue to sponsor this year, for their partnership and support in us being able to say this today.”
A statement from Red Bull read: “Following the Aston Martin Lagonda announcement earlier today, the Team can confirm that the manufacturer will remain title partner until the end of the 2020 season but this contract will not be extended past the end of the current term.
“Red Bull Racing has agreed to release Aston Martin from its Formula One exclusivity clause which in turn has allowed it to generate the necessary investment required to re-finance and pursue alternative opportunities within the sport.”We thank Aston Martin for their support over the past four years in which time we have achieved 12 wins, 50 podiums and six pole positions together. We wish Aston Martin’s employees and shareholders all the best for the future and our focus remains on working together throughout the 2020 season and ending our partnership on a high.”
Personally, I believe that this is a good move for Formula One. Aston Martin brought the famous name to the sport with Red Bull, although it was only a title sponsorship. This is just a renaming of the Racing Point team for now, but once Aston Martin can solve their financial issues, the team may become a full blown works manufacturer. The possibility of the team running the British Racing Green livery is exciting and with the deal running for at least ten years, this could be a turning point for Formula One’s underdog team.
The 2019 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was the final race of the decade, providing us with an underwhelming end to what was a decade of mixed emotions for fans of the racing series, with the final podium providing us with a reflection on the past decade, while giving a glimpse into the future.
The reason that I say that the final podium provides us with a refelction to the past, and a glimpse into the future is because of the drivers that stood upon those steps. Lewis Hamilton, a six-time World Champion, Max Verstappen, the youngest-ever F1 race winner, and Charles Leclerc, the first team-mate to beat Sebastian Vettel in the driver’s standings since 2007.
Photo: Daily Express
Lewis Hamilton has dominated for more than half the decade, winning his second World Driver’s Championship back in 2014, but before that, the years of 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 were dominated by Red Bull Racing, and more specifically, Sebastian Vettel. These two drivers alone won nine of the ten World Driver’s Championships available, Nico Rosberg winning the 2016 title for Mercedes. Winning the final race of the decade, Lewis really summed up what we will associate this decade with, Mercedes domination, despite the early 2010’s being dominated by Red Bull Racing.
Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen provide us with a glimpse into the future. The young Ferrari driver immediately proved to us why he deserves to be in the #16 scarlet-red car, before unfortunately having to drop back to third due to an issue with his car. This came of the back of a terrific rookie campaign for Alfa Romeo Sauber, finishing 13th in the championship. The 2019 season was a difficult one for Leclerc, with the loss of his friend, Anthonie Hubert, after crashing at Spa. The next day, Leclerc went on to win the race, showing the world what a true talent he is.
Max Verstappen, burst onto the stage in 2017 for Scuderia Toro Rosso, After just one full season, and a few races into the next season, he was promoted to the Red Bull Racing set-up, winning on his debut in Spain. He would go on to pick up seven further race wins, claiming his first pole position at the 2019 Hungarian Grand Prix.
Photo: Autosport
But the future of F1 doesnt revolve around these two talents, throughout the grid their is a number of stand-out talents, ready to take their chance when it comes. Lando Norris, McLaren, out qualified his team-mate, Carlos Sainz in his rookie season in 2019, As well in 2019, George Russell, completed a 21-0 qualifying washout against his Williams team-mate, Robert Kubica.
Alex Albon, who got a late race seat at Toro Rosso, drove brilliantly for the team for the first half of the season, before moving up to the Red Bull Racing team, finishing in the top six for every race he completed, with Brazil being his only DNF of the second half of the season.
The future of Formula One looks bright, with the current crop of drivers being some of the best yet. It is unlikely that there will be a changing of the guard in terms of the championship for at least another season, but as soon as Lewis Hamilton starts to slow, Verstappen and Leclerc will be pushing for the title.
The 2019/20 Formula E season got off to a brilliant start, with a double header around the Riyadh Street Circuit. For the first time ever, all four of the major German manufacturers were on the same grid, helping making the most competitive grid in Motorsport, even more competitive.
Photo: Daily Express
Practise for race one was dominated by Envision Virgin Racing, with Practise One being topped by Robin Frijns, followed by GEOX Dragon driver, Nico Müller, then the second Envision Virgin Racing driver, Sam Bird. Practise Two was topped by Envision Virgin Racing driver, Sam Bird, followed by new DS Techeetah driver, Antonio Felix da Costa, and completing the top three was ROKiT Venturi driver, Edoardo Mortara.
The Envision Virgin Racing domination continued into qualifying with Sam Bird topping the group qualification. The Mercedes-Benz EQ drivers, Nyck De Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne completed the group qualification top three. After the grouped qualification, it was time for Super Pole, a one-lap shoot-out for pole postion being contested by the top six from grouped qualification.
BMW i Andretti driver, Alexander Sims claimed pole position, followed by the two Mercedes-Benz EQ drivers, in a different order this time, Stoffel Vandoorne then Nyck De Vries. Edoardo Mortara finished fourth in the ROKiT Venturi, Envision Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird fifth and Jerome D’Ambrosio in the Mahindra, in sixth.
In the actual ePrix itself, Envision Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird was the star of the show, completing many overtakes on his way to victory, and to add to his record of being the only driver to have one a race in every season of Formula E. The podium had a rather refreshing feel, and it was not from the structure itself. TAG Heuer Porsche driver, Andre Lotterer finished in second place, followed by Mercedes-Benz EQ’s Stoffel Vandoorne in third.
Photo: Daily Express
Oliver Rowland (Nissan e.dams), Robin Frijns (Envision Virgin Racing), Nyck De Vries (Mercedes-Benz EQ), Edoardo Mortara (ROKiT Venturi), Alexander Sims (BMW i Andretti) Jerome D’Ambrosio (Mahindra Racing) and Mitch Evans (Panasonic Jaguar) completed the top ten.
The point for the fastest lap was won by Daniel Abt (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler), but as he did not finish inside the top ten, retiring on lap 29 after crashing, the point for the fastest lap went to Mitch Evans (Panasonic Jaguar).
After the opening race of the season the standings were:
Race Two had a completly different feel, with the track having alot more grip than it did the previous day. The single practise session for race two was topped by DS Techeetah’s Antonio Felix da Costa, followed by Sam Bird, Envision Virgin Racing and race one pole sitter, Alexander Sims, driving for BMW i Andretti.
Grouped qualifying was topped by Practise winner, Antonio Felix da Cost, DS Techeetah, followed by Nissan e.dams’ Sebastian Buemi, with Mahindra’s Jerome D’Ambrosio finishing in third. It was then the time for the Super Pole shoot-out.
Superpole was won by Race One pole sitter, Alexander Sims (BMW i Andretti) with Sebastian Buemi (Nissan e.dams) completing the front row. The second row was headed up by Lucas Di Grassi (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler) alongside Jerome D’Ambrosio (Mahindra Racing). The third row consisted of group qualifying winner Antonio Felix da Cost (DS Techeetah), with Mitch Evans (Panasonic Jaguar) rounding out the Super Pole runners.
Race Two was won by another British driver, this time BMW i Andretti’s Alexander Sims, who lead from lights to flag. The final race result changed many times in the aftermath of the race. At the checkered flag, Max Guenther (BMW i Andretti) and Lucas Di Grassi (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler) made up the podium alongside Sims. But in the final classification, it was Lucas Di Grassi (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler) moved up to second and Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-Benz EQ) making up the podium. Max Guenther was handed a penalty for overtaking under safety car conditions, along with Mercedes-Benz EQ’s Nyck De Vries.
Photo: FIA Formula E
Mortara (ROKiT Venturi), Rowland (Nissan e.dams), Abt (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler), Calado (Panasonic Jaguar), Vergne (DS Techeetah), Hartley (GEOX Dragon) and da Costa (DS Techeetah) made up the remaing top ten positions.
The fastest lap point was won by tenth place, Antonio Felix da Costa (DS Techeetah) who was only promoted into the points due to the various penalties and disqualification that occurred.
After two races into the Formula E season the standings are as follows:
It is nearly time for the return of the world’s most electrifying single-seater competition, Formula E. After what seemed to be a low key start to the series, last season the series took off and exceed many peoples expectations. It has gone from a series for people that cant get a Formula One race seat, to a series in which people are choosing the race, such as current Formula Two champion, Nyck De Vries.
Photo: FIA Formula E
The season kicks of in Saudi Arabia, at the Riyadh Street Circuit for the Diriyah ePrix. This first event is a double header with racing taking place on Friday 22nd November and Saturday 23rd November 2019. The street circus then takes a short break until January, returning with the Santiago ePrix on January 18th 2020, followed by the Mexico City ePrix on the 15th February 2020. As 2020 is a leap year, Formula E will mark this significant date with a the Marrakesh ePrix, on the 29th of February incase you needed to be reminded. The Sanya ePrix on the 21st March follows the race in Morocco. The series then takes a trip to Europe, with races in Rome (4th April) and Paris (18th April). The Seoul ePrix on 3rd May is followed by the first ever Jakarta ePrix, held on 6th June 2020. As the season comes to a close, a trip to Berlin on 21st June is followed by the New York ePrix, now a single race event, held on 11th July. The season ends with the return of the London ePrix, a double header, and the first partly indoor race, held on July 25th & 26th.
Photo: The Checkered Flag
The 2019/20 Formula E season also sees the addition of a new team, TAG Heuer Porsche, as well as the rebranding of HWA into the Mercdedes-Benz EQ Formula E team. They will be joined by current Formula E champions, DS Techeetah, Envison Virgin Racing, NIO 333, GEOX Dragon, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, Venturi Racing, Panasonic Jaguar Racing, Nissan e.dams. BMW i Andretti and Mahindra Racing.
DS Techeetah
The current champions will be looking to retain the title this upcoming season. However, there has been a change in the driver line-up. Reigning Driver’s World Champion, Jean Eric-Gergne retains his seat, but will be partnered by former BMW i Andretti driver, António Félix da Costa. They will use DS Automobiles powertrains for the second season running, after switching from Renault powertrains in 2018. They scored 222 points last season, winning the championship, although noteably this points tally is lower than when they finished runners-up in the 2017-18 championship, scoring 262 points.
This season I predict another successful season for the team, but maybe just falling short. Keeping hold of the only two-time World Champion on the grid helps with the experience side of the team, with da Costa providing the team with some freshness, as well as being a previous race winner and being in title contention for much of last season, finishing in sixth place.
Photo: e-racing365
Predicted Finish: 2nd
Envision Virgin Racing
After switching to Audi powertrains for last season, the Envision Virgin Racing team will be hoping to progress further and be in title contention this time around. Keeping their 2019-19 line-up of Sam Bird and Robin Frijns, this consistency might just pay dividends for the team. Last season they finished a solid third place in the Team’s Championship, picking up 191 points, six podiums and three race wins along the way.
This season I predict a strong season for the British team. Sam Bird will be wanting his World title after winning a race in every season of Formula E so far. Frijns outscored his team-mate last season, finishing in 4th, with Bird 8th. This partnership works for the team and with both drivers having the ability to not only get onto the podium, but they both have shown they can win a race too.
Photo: AI Business
Predicted Finish: 1st
NIO 333
This should be on paper another difficult year for the NIO team. This season they will be using the power train that was used by GEOX Dragon last season. This means that they will be at least a year behind on development which can only lead to the team fighting at the back-end of the grid. The NIO team only picked up seven points last season, but with a change in ownership and in the driver line-up, with Ma Qinghua returining to Formula E to race alongside Oliver Turvey.
I predict this team to really struggle this season, given that GEOX Dragon did not have a competitive power train last season, NIO will be further behind that they should be. The only way that I can see NIO manage to get solid points this season is if they manage to get into super pole and the race is massively disrupted through yellow flags and safety cars.
Photo: Downforce Radio
Predicted Finish: 12th
Mercedes-Benz EQ
Formula One’s current most dominate team are going electric and this is one team that will hope to get people talking. After a trail year with HWA racelab, the team have decided to enter full-time with a full works team. Former McLaren F1 driver, Stoffel Vandoorne, who won the fan boost award for every race last season, retains his seat. He will be joined by most of the most exciting young drivers in motorsport, current Formula Two World Champion, Nyck de Vries.
The HWA team finished third last season, however the pace of the car was competitive at times and many mechanical issues caused both cars to finish the race only six times, with a podium in Rome being the highlight. I predict that the Mercedes team will be strong, but not title winning material just yet, they will need time to settle in.
Photo: Formula Scout
Predicted Finish: 3rd
GEOX Dragon
A brand new driver line-up featuring former F1 driver & two-time World Endurance Champion, Brendon Hartley, and 2019 DTM runner-up, Nico Müller, will hope to provide the GEOX Dragon team with a fresh start. This new partnership is exciting for the team, but it may cause a few problems, particularly with neither of them having taken part in a Formula E race before.
I predict a better season for the GEOX Dragon team, although with new entrants it will be hard for them to be fighting at the sharp-end of the grid. I do however expect them to do well in qualifying and pick up at least one pole position, but their race pace might be an issue.
Photo: Robb Report
Predicted Finish: 9th
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
Audi continue with the same driver line-up that they have had since the inaugural season of Formula E. Lucas Di Grassi and Daniel Abt will be hoping that they can put together a title fight, and with the Audi power train that is quite possible.
This season I predict Audi to be competitive, but with Mercedes entering and other teams looking strong in testing, this could be a challenging season for the Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler team. I do expect them to be standing on not only the podium, but the top step of it on a few occasions but with temperamental drivers, this may cause an issue.
Photo: Audi
Predicted Finish: 4th
TAG Heuer Porsche
An new entrant into the series for 2019/20, they will be hoping to start things off in a positive manner. Part of last season’s title winning DS Techeetah team, André Lotterer, has joined the new set up alongside, Neel Jani, 2016 24 hours of Le Mans winner, who has competed in two Formula E races before, back in 2014 for Faraday Future Dragon Racing.
There isn’t much that my prediction can be based on, but I do believe that Porsche will have a strong car for this season, they would not have entered without knowing the level they should be at.
Photo: Autosport
Predicted Finish: 7th
ROKiT Venturi Racing
An exciting line-up that has been retained for tbe upcoming season. F1 legend Felipe Massa and Edoardo Mortara along with Team Principal, Susie Wolff, provide what is an excellent team, with just the car lacking.
I expect better things from Venturi this season, after finishing 8th last season. However, I do believe that they will finish lower than that this season due to the other teams entering the series. I do expect them to do well in Qualifying and in some races, but they didnt have the Wow factor last season as I expected them to and I predict they will struggle this season.
Predicted Finish: 11th
Photo: ROKiT Venturi Racing
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
There has been one change in the driver line-up for Panasonic Jaguar this season, James Calado will join Mitch Evans. Calado raced in the 2019 34 Hours of Le Mans, winning the LMGTE Pro Class, while Evans finished 5th last season in Formula E.
I believe that this season might be a struggle for the Panasonic Jaguar team. Mitch Evans is a very talented driver and will win the odd race. I do believe that James Calado will take time to adapt, and with the car not being super competitive over the previous seasons, and with other teams entering, I think that this team may struggle.
Photo: FormulaSpy
Predicted Finish: 10th
Nissan e.dams
Another retained line-up for next season, this time for the Nissan e.dams team. Sebastian Buemi and Oliver Rowland will be hoping to be more competitive this season after what can only be described as an error prone campaign for the team last time around.
I predict that the Nissan e.dams team will be in title contention, but due to their being such a strong field, they will struggle to maintain a spot at the top of the standings. Last season also highlighted strategic errors something that may occur again this season.
Photo: FIA Formula E
Predicted Finish: 6th
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
The surprise package last season, retained driver. Alexander Sims, alongside former GEOX Dragon racer, Maxi Güenther, will be hoping to start the season of in the form the team did last time around, winning the opening race.
I expect this team to be strong this season, Sims is an experience driver, while Güenther has experience in Formula E and will be wanting to impress. I do expect them to be winning races, but with other teams expected to make progress, I do not know how far this team can develop.
Photo: BMW Blog
Predicted Finish: 5th
Mahindra Racing
The sport’s most flamboyant team, Mahindra Racing with their line-up of Jérôme d’Ambrosio and Pascal Wehrlein, will be hoping to light-up the front end of the grid this season.
Despite the strong retained driver line-up, I do predict them to struggle. The car did not look overly competitive last season, and with the laid back appearance from the team, this season might just be the wake up call that they need.
The 2019 Italian Grand Prix proved why Monza needed to stay on the F1 calendar. A new deal was struck before the weekend, and the race provided the perfect platform as to why fans, especially Ferrari fans, love Monza.
The grid was headed by Ferrari youngster, Charles Leclerc, after his time of 1:19.307. Lewis Hamilton lined up along side Leclerc on the front row after his time of 1:19.346. Mercedes’ Bottas lined up along side Ferrari’s Vettel on the second row, wth the thrid row being a Renault F1 lock out with Ricciardo starting fifth and Hulkenburg starting sixth. Carlos Sainz lined up in seventh place in his McLaren, ahead of Alexander Albon, making his second outing in a Red Bull. The Q1 drop-out curse seems to be over for Lance Stroll, making it into Q3 and starting ninth on the grid, ahead of Alfa-Romeo’s Antonio Giovanazzi, in his home grand prix.
Photo: Pirelli Motorsport
The third qualifying session ended in drama, with all but two cars failing to cross the line in time to set their second flying lap. Nobody wanted to the the first car out and with everyone slowing down to try and get behind others for the tow, the didn’t have enough time to make it around the track and cross the line, with only Leclerc, who had provisional pole at this point, and Sainz able to set another flying lap.
Magnussen and Kvyat lined up 11th and 12th, with Grosjean, Russell and Kubica rounding out the non-penalty related grid positions. Lando Norris, Pierre Gasly, Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen filled out the rest of the grid, with Kimi Raikkonen starting from the pit-lane.
Photo: Sky Sports F1
As in almost every grand prix, the start is dramatic. As the cars bolted down to the first chicane, Leclerc remained in the lead, with Hamilton holding off pressure from Bottas. Max Verstappen went onto the grass and had a broken front wing. Going into the second chicane, the front three remained the same, but Hulkenburg overtook Vettel, much to the tiffosi’s disappointment.
Alex Albon continued his strong form for Red Bull, making a stunning move on Carlos Sainz, one which made Sky Sports F1 Commentor, David Croft, go “WOW”. But straight away Carlos Sainz got ahead of Albon, squeezing him onto the gravel, after they collided but no lasting damage came of the collision.
Lap Six saw yet another spin at Monza for Sebastian Vettel. This time he didn’t get spun around by anyone, he just dropped he car coming into the corner. He went onto the grass and was spinning the tyres to keep the car moving, before rejoining the track and crashing into Perez, who the proceeded to rejoin the track and send Gasly into the gravel at the Ascari chicane.
Leclerc vs Hamilton was the main story of the race, with the young Ferrari driver doing an outstanding job to keep the man from Stevenage behind him. Leclerc squeezed Hamilton into the escape road on lap 23 ending the battle, but Leclerc did receive the black and white flag for his actions.
Photo: Sky Sports F1
Hamilton kept within distance of Leclerc for around 20 more laps before a lock-up on lap 43, resulted in Bottas claiming second. He went to challange the Ferrari, resulting in very little for the Finnish driver, including going deep at the first chicance on lap 51, gifting the win to Leclerc.
Photo: Sky Sports F1
After 53 laps around the the only real high-speed track left on the calender at Monza, Charles Leclerc claimed his second win in Formula One, after winning in Spa last time out. This time he could celebrate, last weeks race was over shadowed by the death of F2 driver, Anthonie Hubert.
The Tiffosi went mad, celebrating the end of the weekend in the best way possible, an Italian car winning the race. The fastest lap was set by Lewis Hamilton, 1:21.779, gaining an extra World Championship point. Bottas claimed second place ahead of Hamilton in third.
The race result was as follows:
Photo: Formula One
The World Driver’s Championship after the Italian GP:
richardsmyth.sport.blog 