Lewis Hamilton topped the times for Mercedes in Friday’s overnight second practice session for the Formula One Italian Grand Prix by the finest of margins in front of Lando Norris as Daniel Ricciardo impressed.
Seven-time world champion Hamilton clocked a fastest lap of one minute, 20.738 seconds at Monza, just 0.003sec ahead of McLaren’s Norris who is the closest challenger to Max Verstappen’s current F1 supremacy.
Norris trails Red Bull’s championship leader by 70 points in the drivers’ championship after a stunning win at last weekend’s Dutch GP.
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That was the fifth straight race not to be won by Verstappen, who was fastest in the first practice session but was 0.872sec behind Hamilton in the second back in 14th place.
Hamilton’s display in a session disrupted for over 10 minutes by Kevin Magnussen crashing his Haas at the Lesmo corners is a good sign for the rest of the weekend, as he has won two of the last four GPs and is racing at the home track of his future team Ferrari.
The 39-year-old will join the Scuderia next season, replacing Carlos Sainz who was third in the second session, 0.103 off the pace.
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Hamilton’s current teammate at Mercedes George Russell finished the session 0.348sec back in sixth, a decent result after his car was badly damaged by rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli earlier in the day.
Italian Antonelli’s first ever F1 drive ended quickly and in spectacular fashion early in the first practice session as he spun off the track with just four completed laps under his belt.
The 18-year-old was given a chance by Mercedes to drive Russell’s car but lost control at the Parabolica and smashed into the trackside barriers, seriously damaging the front end.
Antonelli said sorry as he climbed out unhurt, and Mercedes called the incident “unfortunate but all part of the learning curve”.
“He apologised first of all, and that is what you need to do when you bring a car back that looks a little bit like a Lego box falling on the floor,” said team chief Toto Wolff.
Wolff was unperturbed by the crash, saying that “no one’s interested in FP1 anyway” and adding that the Italian would get probably another chance in a Mercedes F1 car at the Mexican GP at the end of October.
Antonelli, who competes in the Formula Two championship for Prema Racing, is reported to be in contention to be Russell’s teammate when Hamilton switches to Ferrari.
He was not the only driver to have problems at the Parabolica as Sainz nearly slid off and Franco Colapinto, another rookie who has replaced Logan Sargeant at Williams, hit the gravel at the same corner but managed to get his car back on the track.
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On Thursday the same corner even claimed the safety car, suggesting that there could be more problems at that point of the resurfaced, and roasting hot track, over the weekend.
Meanwhile Australia’s Ricciardo made his mark at Monza with strong performances in both practice sessions amid his uncertain future.
With the 34-year old’s contract with Visa Cash App RB due to expire at the end of 2024, Ricciardo out-qualified teammate Yuki Tsunoda, who had a new upgrade package as well as an extension in place for next season, in both sessions.
Ricciardo’s time in FP2 also made him the fastest of all the Red Bull drivers, including Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, who’s seemingly under pressure to keep his seat.
While Ricciardo’s poor form earlier this season means he’s unlikely to be a contender to potentially fill that role and return to his former team, he certainly did his chances no harm amid promising recent form.
A strong ending to the campaign and the Aussie veteran may just give Christian Horner and company something to think about in terms of who partners Verstappen next season.
F1 FP2 Results: Italian Grand Prix 2024
1. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] – 1:20.738sec
2. Lando Norris [McLaren] – +0.003s
3. Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] – +0.103s
4. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] – +0.120s
5. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] – +0.154s
6. George Russell [Mercedes] – +0.348s
7. Nico Hulkenberg [Haas] – +0.402s
8. Daniel Ricciardo [VCARB] – +0.562s
9. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] – +0.578s
10. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] – +0.625s
11. Valtteri Bottas [Kick Sauber] – +0.723s
12. Kevin Magnussen [Haas] – +0.761s
13. Alex Albon [Williams] – +0.854s
14. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] – +0.872s
15. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] – +0.940s
16. Yuki Tsunoda [VCARB] – +0.997s
17. Franco Colapinto [Williams] – +1.046s
18. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] – +1.081s
19. Esteban Ocon [Alpine] – +1.129s
20. Zhou Guanyu [Kick Sauber] – +1.485s
F1 FP1 Results: Italian Grand Prix 2024
1. Max Verstappen [Red Bull] – 1:21.676sec
2. Charles Leclerc [Ferrari] – +0.228s
3. Lando Norris [McLaren] – +0.241s
4. Carlos Sainz [Ferrari] – +0.450s
5. Valtteri Bottas [Kick Sauber] – +0.451s
6. Oscar Piastri [McLaren] – +0.523s
7. Lewis Hamilton [Mercedes] – +0.538s
8. Alex Albon [Williams] – +0.544s
9. Sergio Perez [Red Bull] – +0.635s
10. Fernando Alonso [Aston Martin] – +0.639s
11. Kevin Magnussen [Haas] – +0.896s
12. Daniel Ricciardo [VCARB] – +0.929s
13. Yuki Tsunoda [VCARB] – +1.038s
14. Pierre Gasly [Alpine] – +1.087s
15. Zhou Guanyu [Kick Sauber] – +1.178s
16. Lance Stroll [Aston Martin] – +1.188s
17. Franco Colapinto [Williams] – +1.204s
18. Esteban Ocon [Alpine] – +1.204s
19. Nico Hulkenberg [Haas] – +1.481s
20. Kimi Antonelli [Mercedes] – +2.279s
Source Agencies
