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Italian GP
F1 Italian GP Live Commentary and Updates - Race day
Updates from the Sunday at Monza for the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix
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Max Verstappen comes into the final European race of the season on red-hot form with four consecutive wins, which has seen him stretch his F1 world championship lead to 109 points.
It means the pressure increases on home favourites Ferrari and Charles Leclerc, who took pole position for the Scuderia's home race in Italy.
Verstappen was one of a number of drivers to take a grid penalty for power unit changes, elevating Mercedes' George Russell to the front row - with last year's winner Daniel Ricciardo moved up to fourth behind McLaren team-mate Lando Norris.
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Verstappen posts a 1m25.782s at the end of lap 4, and gets an excellent tow from Russell - diving down the inside for Turn 1 and grabs second!
Having got by Perez on the second lap, Sainz is leading the Mexican driver through the midfield. Both are already clear of Latifi and Magnussen and up to 13th and 14th respectively.
Replays of the start show a bit of bumping and grinding at Turn 1 involving Schumacher and Bottas. Later on in the first lap Bottas lost some bodywork which was collected by Hamilton directly behind him.
Replay there of Norris' slow start - just gets bogged down on the initial clutch drop. He's got back up to sixth after clearing Fernando Alonso.
The back of the grid party sees Sainz up to 15th, fighting Perez through Curva Grande on the second lap. But it was a poor start for Hamilton who is still 19th and behind Tsunoda.
Lap 2, and Verstappen's sprinting past Ricciardo for third - easy as you like.
Verstappen's already on Gasly's tail, and dives down the inside at the Variante Ascari to grab fourth place!
Verstappen is rather gifted a place by that slow start by Norris and then also gets by Alonso into Turn 1 to move up to fifth!
Lights out
And the 2022 Italian Grand Prix is GO! That's a VERY slow start from Norris, as Leclerc holds off Russell into Turn 1.
The front-runners line up - bit of a wait to let the rest of the field crack on with their formation laps and get to the grid.
Green flag
The formation lap begins! Here we go...
The fourth row of the grid is like that stand at the Red Bull Ring - only those from the Netherlands may apply.
Tyre news: All on mediums, except Leclerc, Russell, Verstappen, de Vries, and Ocon. That quintet starts on softs.
Five minutes to go, everyone! Are you sitting comfortably?
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Advertisements in F1 have become a lot more homogeneous these days. I remember driving the Monza track on F1 '97, featuring ad hoardings for cheese, batteries and the 'new' Renault Megane. It was like an Italian Road America.
Andrea Bocelli performs the Italian national anthem, although there were a few audio issues that'll cost more than a tenor to fix. You're welcome!
Not to say that Leclerc wasn't a conventional winner back in 2019, but it was only his second win back in the day when the Ferrari was a terror in a straight line.
Our most recent trio of Italian Grand Prix winners are Charles Leclerc, Pierre Gasly and Daniel Ricciardo. Will we get a more conventional race winner today, or can someone spring a big surprise?
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Oh yes, here it is! We've picked some of our favourite Italian GPs here: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/autosport-writers-favourite-f1-italian-grands-prix/10366286/
Just over half an hour until this crazy, mixed up grid files into Turn 1. Back in the day, when it was a double-chicane, it caused all sorts of drama. If only we had something to reflect on those races...
Is there an easier, less confusing solution to grid penalties? Long-lap penalties? Ballast? Being forced to put a slow driver in the car? There are many possibilities, with none of them expected to be considered.
So let's explain why Verstappen starts seventh. The FIA mandated a couple of years ago that the full grid penalty should be served. Max gets moved down to seventh and, regardless of the other drivers with pens, anyone else without a penalty gets moved up.
Breaking news
As part of our five-star service, we can offer you a grid for today - explaining it should take us up to the start of the race.
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Good afternoon everyone and welcome to our Autosport Live feed for the Italian GP! If you're on the move and can't watch the race, or just to keep tabs on anything you've missed, we're here for you.
By: autosport.com
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