P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Who has made the list of Winners and Losers from the 2024 trip to Monza and the Italian Grand Prix.
“He wins in Monza, again. Before Charles Leclerc arrived at Ferrari in 2019, it had been nearly a decade since the Tifosi saw one of its beloved Cavallino Rampantes gallop across the line first to win the Italian Grand Prix. He’s now done it twice after a stunning triumph for his second ‘home’ win of the season after Monaco. The Monaco and Italian Grands Prix as your two wins as a Monegasque Ferrari driver does not get any better – so where better place to start our round-up of Winners and Losers than with the darling of the Tifosi. Leclerc has been unfairly criticised by some as a ‘pole position merchant’ who is rapid over one-lap, but can sometimes struggle to string things together in the race. But this was a stunning race drive, and one of the best of his career, especially around the time when Oscar Piastri pitted for the second time. Leclerc had been careful not to take too much life out of his hard tyres, with the knowledge that the one-stop was possible, but tough given the graining experienced throughout the field. But rather than going for broke, he nursed the front-left and when he got the clear air and the lead after Piastri stopped, there was nothing to lose in going to the end, with third place the worst possible result. In the end, the Tifosi got what it wanted, Leclerc him and F1 another feel good story. McLaren has to realise that it has a prime opportunity to win the drivers’ and constructors’ championships and must drop this ‘papaya rules’ nonsense that feels like management speak for ‘we don’t want to upset Oscar Piastri.’ Piastri is not going to win the 2024 championship, Lando Norris might just. By letting Piastri through in Hungary he lost out on seven extra points to Max Verstappen and by simply not telling Piastri to not attack Norris in Italy, maybe a further 10 if Norris had gone onto win. That’s simply unforgivable for a team doing so much right at the moment and is riding the crest of a wave with momentum and a car that looks as if it can challenge anywhere. But a decision needed to be taken on Saturday night ahead of the race that Piastri is now number two for the rest of the season and Norris be given whatever it takes to win. Opportunities like this do not come around often. As for Norris, he wisely backed out of the Turn 4 move on Piastri on the opening lap, risking a collision, but starting on pole, the only place you need to finish is first – anything less is a failure. There are still chances to get at Verstappen but a 62 point gap in the drivers’ is far bigger than it should have been as F1 leaves Europe for the flyways. Ferrari’s strategy has come under fire a lot in recent times, but this was expertly judged for a team who whisper it, but might just be in title contention. To have the guts to go for a one-stop when everyone else around goes for a two and to stick with that conviction smells of something Ferrari’s strategy has lacked at times, racer’s instinct. If you pit again, you come home third, get a nice trophy and everyone smiles. Stay out, and you go for the win with nothing to lose and come away with a grand prix victory. Ferrari got it right. Baku and Singapore coming up should also suit the SF-24 package.”
