First Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s crash in FP1, then best time in FP2: Mercedes leads the extremely tightly bunched field at Monza
Lewis Hamilton set the fastest time in the second free practice session for the 2024 Italian Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver completed his fastest lap on the high-speed track in Monza in 1:20.738 minutes, putting him just 0.003 seconds ahead of Lando Norris (McLaren) at the front of the field
Friday practice provided a good foretaste that Monza 2024 could turn into a very exciting battle for victory. At the end of the second practice session, three teams were within 0.154 seconds of each other – and Max Verstappen (Red Bull) would probably have been further ahead had there not been a red flag after 30 minutes.
Verstappen had set the fastest time in the first practice session, but was only in 13th position at the time of the interruption. And because refueling and training for Sunday’s race usually takes place at the end of Friday practice, he was unable to improve on his absolute best time.
Carlos Sainz was the faster of the two Ferrari drivers early on Friday evening and secured third place, ahead of Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). Monza is an important weekend for Ferrari – not only because of the home crowd, but also because of the introduction of a major update including a revised underbody.
Nico Hülkenberg (Haas) finished a sensational seventh, but was already 0.402 seconds behind Hamilton’s best time – and presumably benefited from the interruption of the session, as no one was seriously chasing times afterwards.
George Russell (6th/+0.348) was unable to take to the track from the start. He had opted out of the first practice session for Friday’s driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli, but the 18-year-old Italian put the Mercedes into the wall after just ten minutes. At 45g, at the former Parabolica (Alboreto corner).
The repairs could not be completed in time for the start of the second practice session, meaning that Russell only took to the track after around 25 minutes. Incidentally, with the older Mercedes underbody specification. Team-mate Hamilton drove the newer one for comparison, which was still on Antonelli’s car in the first practice session.
On the pit radio, both Mercedes drivers complained in unison, not because of the handling of the underbody, but because of the excessive heat, which literally set them on fire on an already hot day with asphalt temperatures of up to 50 degrees.
The session was only half an hour old when it had to be interrupted for a good ten minutes with the red flag. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) skidded off the rear end at the exit of the second Lesmo corner, spun around in the gravel and crashed nose-first into the tire pile after a flawless 360
Where can you watch the Italian Grand Prix live?
First of all: Even if you didn’t watch the sessions live, you can still get your fill of Formula 1 in the evening. You can watch the daily live streams on the Formel1.de YouTube channel. Christian Nimmervoll and Kevin Hermann will be analyzing the day in Monza on Friday at 10:30 p.m., supported by a team of eight journalists on site at the race track
The good news for German Formula 1 fans is that qualifying and the race at the Italian Grand Prix will be broadcast live by RTL. Qualifying on Saturday from 16:00 (preliminary reports: 15:30), the race on Sunday from 15:00 (preliminary reports: 14:00).