The 2024 F1 Italian Grand Prix will be greenlighted at 9:00 A.M. EST on Sunday, September 1. Pressures are high for the drivers and teams as the competition for Championship points builds. Some feared F1 2024 would be a replay of Red Bull and Max Verstappen’s 2023 dominance, but, with nine races remaining, four teams are in contention for the Constructors’ Championship, and five, possibly six drivers could put together enough points for the Drivers’ Championship.
Why the Italian Grand Prix is so important
The Italian Grand Prix at Monza is the home track for Ferrari fans known as the tifosi. Monza is a favorite in the sport for its speed, history, and the excitement level that lifts to nearly unimaginable heights. Monza has been on the schedule every year in F1 history, but one. Long straights enable high speeds that often result in the shortest time duration race of the season. The fervor for this year’s race is exceptionally high because of the contention for the Championships.
F1 teams prep for the Italian Grand Prix
- Red Bull (434 Constructors’ Championship points): Red Bull and Max Verstappen (295 Driver Championship points) don’t have locks on the Constructors and Driver Championships, although their current points margins are reasonably healthy. At the end of last week’s Dutch Grand Prix Verstappen said their car wasn’t as fast as McClaren in that race, but different tracks have different characteristics. Verstappen has won seven Grand Prix this year so far. Driver Sergio Perez (139 points) is adding points regularly.
- McLaren (404): With two drivers in the top four in Driver Championship points, Lando Norris (225) and Oscar Piastri (179), McLaren trails Red Bull by only 30 points. Norris won the Dutch Grand Prix and is considered Verstappen’s greatest threat. Norris’s most glaring issue is losing advantage of position at the race start.
- Ferrari (370): Ferrari brings an upgraded car to its home track. It’s an emotional weekend for drivers Charles Leclec (192) and Carlos Sainz (172), Lecldec because of the Tifosi support and because he lives in nearby Milan and can sleep in his own bed and see his dog. For Sainz, who will race for Williams next year, this race will be his last race at his team’s home track.
- Mercedes (276): Driver Lewis Hamilton (154) has the record for the most pole positions (7) at Monza and is tied with Michael Schumacher for the most wins (5). Lewis, who will begin driving for Ferrari next season, says he has always enjoyed and felt welcomed at Monza and expects this year and next the outpouring of fan emotions will be even greater. Mercedes was not strong at the Dutch Grand Prix but hopes to come back at Monza. Driver George Russell (122) has won two Grand Prix this year.
- Aston Martin (74): Drivers Fernando Alonso (50) and Lance Stroll (24) consider Monza the Temple of Speed because of its “Minimal downforce, blistering speed, close racing, and a fervent atmosphere created by passionate tifosi.”
- RB (34): Daniel Ricciardo (12) is looking forward to the fans’ energy at Monza, and Yuki Tsunoda (22) is looking forward to driving the high-speed track with little downforce. Because it has been resurfaced, all drivers will need to re-learn the track.
- Haas (27): Drivers Nico Hulkenberg (22) and Kevin Magnussen (5) both were looking forward to the low downforce track but equally cautious about the effect of a new surface and changes in the tracking curbing.
- Alpine (13): Drivers Pierre Gasly (8) and Estaban Ocon (5) have both scored points at Monza in previous seasons and expect that learning the changes in the track layout quickly will be crucial to their success this year.
- Williams (4): In the news this week after replacing driver Logan Sargeant (0) with F2 driver Franco Colapinto, Williams hopes to be more competitive with an upgraded car and Colapinto teamed with Alex Albon (4).
- Kick Sauber (0): Drivers Valtteri Bottas (0) and Zhou Guanyu (0) are looking forward to the race because they believe the track is more suited to their racecar and the energy of the crowd is encouraging.
