After the first day of practice on a wet Monza circuit we can say we haven't learned a huge amount about the how the 2019 slick tires behave around the temple of speed.
In both FP1 and FP2 sesions we saw red flags and rain featured throughout both sessions. Conditions are set to remain variable for the rest of the weekend, so today could end up being quite representative. The rain ensured representative running on the Pirelli (green) intermediate tyres, as well as the slick tyres. This gave teams a valuable initial insight into the likely crossover points, which could be extremely useful information this weekend. Despite the rain, today's best FP2 time was already faster than its equivalent one year ago.
So far, the time difference between the medium and the soft is just under a second per lap but track evolution in dry conditions means that this will come down. In the cool conditions seen today, with track temperatures peaking at only 28 degrees centigrade, the softer compounds not surprisingly generally worked better.
There's a patch of new asphalt at the second chicane: this is smoother and more slippery than the other parts of the track, especially when the surface is damp.
The uncertain weather expected for the rest of the weekend means that there could be different approaches to qualifying, with different teams opting for either a wet or a dry set-up. Charles Leclerc was fastest with in the Ferrari SF90 in FP1 (on the medium tyre) as well as in FP2 (on the soft tyre). But the true picture of relative performance between the top teams is still uncertain.
So how did the drivers experience their this first day at the temple of speed in Monza? In order of the FP2 results we summed up the drivers comments after the first day of practice in Italy.
Scuderia Ferrari
Charles Leclerc
“It was a special feeling to drive for Ferrari in Monza for the first time. I could actually see the tifosi cheering for us from the grandstands while I was driving, and it is just amazing to be here.
The day went quite well. While it is nice to be quickest, I don’t think that we have a real picture of the whole situation yet due to the tricky conditions we faced on track today. In FP1, we were very competitive, especially on the intermediates, which is a positive. However, the lap times on the dry tyres in FP2 are not really representative and we have to keep working and understand where we can gain some more time. Our competitors are quick and we are still to see their full potential.
The car felt good. In terms of race pace, we are not yet at the point we were in Spa. On the qualifying pace, we also have some work to do and we will give our all to do a good job tomorrow.”
Sebastian Vettel
“The day was ok, but we can still get more out of the car. FP1 was a bit of a scrappy session, with all the teams heading out as soon as the light went green after each red flag. We didn’t have the usual rhythm of a Friday, but the main thing is that we got some decent laps in and we know where our weaknesses are and what to focus on.
For qualifying, we have to see what the conditions will be like, how careful we might need to be on the out lap, and how the tyres will work. Then we will take it from there. It is nice if you get a tow around here, and the priority is to get one perfect lap.
Ahead of the race, you just want to improve the car and make it faster overall, because you need a car that allows you to have a good performance while also saving the tyres. We have some work to do, and I know that I can find more for tomorrow.”
Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport
Lewis Hamilton
"Practice was a bit of a challenge with the weather today; when it’s raining, it’s all risk and no real reward as you don’t really learn a lot, so we didn’t do a huge amount of running in the first session. It was mostly dry in FP2, so that was much better for everyone.
As expected, the Ferraris are quite quick in a straight line, but our race pace felt strong and we seem to be a little closer on single lap pace than we were last week in Spa, so it looks like we can be in the fight. We’ll go through the data with a fine comb tonight, trying to see where I can improve as a driver and also what we can tweak with the set-up, to make sure we can squeeze everything out of the car. It’s going to be a really hard race on Sunday, but we seem to be close to the Ferraris which is good start to the weekend."
Valtteri Bottas
"The first session was a bit messy, we couldn’t work through our programme as planned, but that was the same for everyone. It was raining in different areas of the track at different times, which made it tricky to get detailed data on tyres and car behaviour, but we got a bit of a feel for the car and that wasn’t too bad.
The runs on higher fuel at the end felt good and the pace looked good as well, so that’s promising for Sunday. However, there’s still lots of room for improvements before we head into Qualifying tomorrow. We need to find the perfect set-up for our package and a good tow down the straights – that’s going to be key if we want to be able to fight for pole."
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing
Max Verstappen
“It was a good day. Of course, the conditions were a bit tricky out there, but the car was working really well and we seem quite competitive on a track that doesn’t normally suit us. Around Monza, the real lap time is hard to see because of the tow but my fastest lap was done on my own and it felt good. I definitely think this new engine is a good step forward and you can feel the extra power which is positive.
We know we won’t battle in qualifying as we will start at the back but looking at the long runs the pace was good and the car felt really nice to drive in all conditions which is always a big bonus. I would probably choose rain for Sunday starting at the back, as we will have a better chance of coming through the field, but even in the dry we can still be competitive and we will try to make a fun race out of it.”
Alexander Albon
“There were a few crashes today as this track can be quite slippery when it’s raining, particularly with all the sap from the trees washing onto the track. We had mixed conditions, so we started out quite slowly but built up our confidence throughout the day. We are expecting similar conditions on Sunday so that is why everyone was out there trying to do some laps.
I found the short runs were more positive than the long runs and, after today, I have a good idea about the things I need to change and work on for Sunday’s race. Of course, it’s not easy adjusting to less downforce, the braking feels different, but overall it didn’t feel too bad. I’m just finding my feet and that makes it important to get everything right. We will see what tomorrow brings but after today I’m feeling pretty good.”
Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda
Pierre Gasly
“It was a good first day in the car with quite a few laps on the board. I’m feeling more comfortable with the car now and we managed to do a few laps on the wet tyre this morning and try different things, especially for me to get a good feeling with this car in the wet which was good.
We had the first proper dry session in FP2 which I would say was quite positive, finishing with the seventh best time of the session. Our long run pace was strong so it’s looking good, although we know we will start from the back on Sunday, but at the moment I’m happy with the car. If we can find a bit more pace we should have an exciting race.”
Daniil Kvyat
“I think we had a decent Friday and managed to get a lot of mileage covered. We were able to complete our plan and the car is behaving quite well, I think we can try to optimise the package further for tomorrow and see if we can squeeze a bit more out of it.
I was generally quite satisfied with how today went, so we need to work well overnight to continue improving the car.”
Rich Energy Haas F1 Team
Romain Grosjean
“It was pretty good actually. The afternoon went well. In the morning, we just tried a little bit on the intermediates – I don’t think we were very competitive, the settings were not fully adjusted for the wet conditions.
The afternoon was a surprise to be fair, I wasn’t expecting to be that comfortable in the car. The pace of the car was good, the feeling in the car was good, it was enjoyable. We did a long run, so I was happy with that. It’s been a good day, hopefully that carries on tomorrow.”
Kevin Magnussen
“It was good today, we got to try both wet and dry conditions. It seemed okay in both. It was a little bit messy with times, so I’m not putting too much into the classifications. T
he feeling was good on the long run, it went well. The car actually felt good and had some grip. It was nothing crazy but still pretty good. Overall, not a bad day.”
Renault F1 Team
Daniel Ricciardo
“It’s always fun around Monza and it’s good to be back here. It was a pretty positive day and it was nice to get a bit of wet weather driving in. The morning went relatively well and the afternoon was solid.
We probably managed more running than we first expected as the weather looked worse on the radar. I was happy to get laps under my belt and the car felt good. I’m comfortable in both dry and wet and we have a decent base for both set-ups.”
Nico Hulkenberg
“It was okay today, although, our running was a little bit interrupted with the weather. Overall, everything went well today. I felt comfortable in the car from this morning, the baseline feels good, and we have the usual tweaks to make here and there.
On a whole, it’s good and I was happy enough both in wet and dry conditions. I’ll welcome the weather as it comes.”
McLaren F1 Team
Carlos Sainz
“It was a positive Friday with some encouraging pace in the wet and also on the slicks. I’m not entirely sure where we are because we didn’t run the Soft compound in FP2, so we’ll see where we fit tomorrow in the standings.
“The car behaved fairly well and I’m happy with our baseline start. There is always a margin to improve so we’ll work on it tonight.”
Lando Norris
“A bit of a messy day. FP1 wasn’t bad. The track was drying, so it wasn’t like you could do proper testing. The track was just getting drier and drier. But the car felt pretty good, fairly comfortable and from the bit of wet running we did, I was pretty happy.
“Obviously FP2 was not what we’d planned. I went out for one lap at the beginning but then we had an oil leak, so we had to fix that which meant I could only go out for the last 20 minutes or so, and I used all of those laps just to get up to speed. They were the first few dry laps I did of the day so I wanted to push and feel the limit of the car, but at the same time it was trying to figure out where to brake and things like that. So, on the whole a bit messy, but some productive things.”
Alfa Romeo Racing
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SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team
Lance Stroll
"The day was very disrupted because of the weather. We didn’t get much running in so it is hard to tell where we are relative to the other teams. It’s a shame for the fans who came out wanting to see the cars on track.
The mixed conditions made it challenging to run and even when we put the dry tyres on this afternoon it started to drizzle so we will have to wait and see where we really stand. A lot of the guys did their performance run early in the session, when it was dry, but we were on the option tyre at that point. When we went to the qualifying tyre it started to rain so we didn’t show everything today. Let’s see what the data says and where we can improve overnight."
Sergio Pérez
"It was a bad start with a crash on my out lap in FP1. Luckily we didn’t lose any track time in FP2 when the track was a bit drier.
We have a good amount of information for tomorrow and hopefully we’ll be able to close up the gap in qualifying when conditions could be very different."
ROKiT Williams Racing
Robert Kubica
"Today the weather was the big player and so we did some running in wet and dry conditions. The pace is as expected, Monza is a very high-speed track and we are not the kings there.
The car felt the best it has done all year, which is surprising as it is a circuit you normally struggle to get right straight away. However, the Italian fans create a good atmosphere and its nice to be back racing in Monza."
George Russell
"Today was quite inconvenient with the weather but every lap on track you learn something. FP1 was quite a constructive session for us as we did some back-to-back comparisons with a low downforce wing versus our standard one.
FP2 was quite positive with the long run; I wasn’t very pleased with myself in the low fuel run but overall, I think we made the most of a tricky day."
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After the first day of practice on a wet Monza circuit we can say we haven't learned a huge amount about the how the 2019 slick tires behave around the temple of speed.
In both FP1 and FP2 sesions we saw red flags and rain featured throughout both sessions. Conditions are set to remain variable for the rest of the weekend, so today could end up being quite representative. The rain ensured representative running on the Pirelli (green) intermediate tyres, as well as the slick tyres. This gave teams a valuable initial insight into the likely crossover points, which could be extremely useful information this weekend. Despite the rain, today's best FP2 time was already faster than its equivalent one year ago.
So far, the time difference between the medium and the soft is just under a second per lap but track evolution in dry conditions means that this will come down. In the cool conditions seen today, with track temperatures peaking at only 28 degrees centigrade, the softer compounds not surprisingly generally worked better.
There's a patch of new asphalt at the second chicane: this is smoother and more slippery than the other parts of the track, especially when the surface is damp.
The uncertain weather expected for the rest of the weekend means that there could be different approaches to qualifying, with different teams opting for either a wet or a dry set-up. Charles Leclerc was fastest with in the Ferrari SF90 in FP1 (on the medium tyre) as well as in FP2 (on the soft tyre). But the true picture of relative performance between the top teams is still uncertain.
So how did the drivers experience their this first day at the temple of speed in Monza? In order of the FP2 results we summed up the drivers comments after the first day of practice in Italy.
Scuderia Ferrari
Charles Leclerc (P1 in FP2)
Charles Leclerc
“It was a special feeling to drive for Ferrari in Monza for the first time. I could actually see the tifosi cheering for us from the grandstands while I was driving, and it is just amazing to be here.
The day went quite well. While it is nice to be quickest, I don’t think that we have a real picture of the whole situation yet due to the tricky conditions we faced on track today. In FP1, we were very competitive, especially on the intermediates, which is a positive. However, the lap times on the dry tyres in FP2 are not really representative and we have to keep working and understand where we can gain some more time. Our competitors are quick and we are still to see their full potential.
The car felt good. In terms of race pace, we are not yet at the point we were in Spa. On the qualifying pace, we also have some work to do and we will give our all to do a good job tomorrow.”
Sebastian Vettel (P3 in FP2)
Sebastian Vettel
“The day was ok, but we can still get more out of the car. FP1 was a bit of a scrappy session, with all the teams heading out as soon as the light went green after each red flag. We didn’t have the usual rhythm of a Friday, but the main thing is that we got some decent laps in and we know where our weaknesses are and what to focus on.
For qualifying, we have to see what the conditions will be like, how careful we might need to be on the out lap, and how the tyres will work. Then we will take it from there. It is nice if you get a tow around here, and the priority is to get one perfect lap.
Ahead of the race, you just want to improve the car and make it faster overall, because you need a car that allows you to have a good performance while also saving the tyres. We have some work to do, and I know that I can find more for tomorrow.”
Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport
Lewis Hamilton (P2 in FP2)
Lewis Hamilton
"Practice was a bit of a challenge with the weather today; when it’s raining, it’s all risk and no real reward as you don’t really learn a lot, so we didn’t do a huge amount of running in the first session. It was mostly dry in FP2, so that was much better for everyone.
As expected, the Ferraris are quite quick in a straight line, but our race pace felt strong and we seem to be a little closer on single lap pace than we were last week in Spa, so it looks like we can be in the fight. We’ll go through the data with a fine comb tonight, trying to see where I can improve as a driver and also what we can tweak with the set-up, to make sure we can squeeze everything out of the car. It’s going to be a really hard race on Sunday, but we seem to be close to the Ferraris which is good start to the weekend."
Valtteri Bottas (P4 in FP2)
Valtteri Bottas
"The first session was a bit messy, we couldn’t work through our programme as planned, but that was the same for everyone. It was raining in different areas of the track at different times, which made it tricky to get detailed data on tyres and car behaviour, but we got a bit of a feel for the car and that wasn’t too bad.
The runs on higher fuel at the end felt good and the pace looked good as well, so that’s promising for Sunday. However, there’s still lots of room for improvements before we head into Qualifying tomorrow. We need to find the perfect set-up for our package and a good tow down the straights – that’s going to be key if we want to be able to fight for pole."
Aston Martin Red Bull Racing
Max Verstappen (P5 in FP2)
Max Verstappen
“It was a good day. Of course, the conditions were a bit tricky out there, but the car was working really well and we seem quite competitive on a track that doesn’t normally suit us. Around Monza, the real lap time is hard to see because of the tow but my fastest lap was done on my own and it felt good. I definitely think this new engine is a good step forward and you can feel the extra power which is positive.
We know we won’t battle in qualifying as we will start at the back but looking at the long runs the pace was good and the car felt really nice to drive in all conditions which is always a big bonus. I would probably choose rain for Sunday starting at the back, as we will have a better chance of coming through the field, but even in the dry we can still be competitive and we will try to make a fun race out of it.”
Alexander Albon (P6 in FP2)
Alexander Albon
“There were a few crashes today as this track can be quite slippery when it’s raining, particularly with all the sap from the trees washing onto the track. We had mixed conditions, so we started out quite slowly but built up our confidence throughout the day. We are expecting similar conditions on Sunday so that is why everyone was out there trying to do some laps.
I found the short runs were more positive than the long runs and, after today, I have a good idea about the things I need to change and work on for Sunday’s race. Of course, it’s not easy adjusting to less downforce, the braking feels different, but overall it didn’t feel too bad. I’m just finding my feet and that makes it important to get everything right. We will see what tomorrow brings but after today I’m feeling pretty good.”
Pierre Gasly (P7 in FP2)
Pierre Gasly
“It was a good first day in the car with quite a few laps on the board. I’m feeling more comfortable with the car now and we managed to do a few laps on the wet tyre this morning and try different things, especially for me to get a good feeling with this car in the wet which was good.
We had the first proper dry session in FP2 which I would say was quite positive, finishing with the seventh best time of the session. Our long run pace was strong so it’s looking good, although we know we will start from the back on Sunday, but at the moment I’m happy with the car. If we can find a bit more pace we should have an exciting race.”
Daniil Kvyat (P10 in FP2)
Daniil Kvyat
“I think we had a decent Friday and managed to get a lot of mileage covered. We were able to complete our plan and the car is behaving quite well, I think we can try to optimise the package further for tomorrow and see if we can squeeze a bit more out of it.
I was generally quite satisfied with how today went, so we need to work well overnight to continue improving the car.”
Romain Grosjean (P8 in FP2 )
Romain Grosjean
“It was pretty good actually. The afternoon went well. In the morning, we just tried a little bit on the intermediates – I don’t think we were very competitive, the settings were not fully adjusted for the wet conditions.
The afternoon was a surprise to be fair, I wasn’t expecting to be that comfortable in the car. The pace of the car was good, the feeling in the car was good, it was enjoyable. We did a long run, so I was happy with that. It’s been a good day, hopefully that carries on tomorrow.”
Kevin Magnussen (P13 in FP2)
Kevin Magnussen
“It was good today, we got to try both wet and dry conditions. It seemed okay in both. It was a little bit messy with times, so I’m not putting too much into the classifications. T
he feeling was good on the long run, it went well. The car actually felt good and had some grip. It was nothing crazy but still pretty good. Overall, not a bad day.”
Renault F1 Team
Daniel Ricciardo (P9 in FP2)
Daniel Ricciardo
“It’s always fun around Monza and it’s good to be back here. It was a pretty positive day and it was nice to get a bit of wet weather driving in. The morning went relatively well and the afternoon was solid.
We probably managed more running than we first expected as the weather looked worse on the radar. I was happy to get laps under my belt and the car felt good. I’m comfortable in both dry and wet and we have a decent base for both set-ups.”
Nico Hulkenberg (P11 in FP2)
Nico Hulkenberg
“It was okay today, although, our running was a little bit interrupted with the weather. Overall, everything went well today. I felt comfortable in the car from this morning, the baseline feels good, and we have the usual tweaks to make here and there.
On a whole, it’s good and I was happy enough both in wet and dry conditions. I’ll welcome the weather as it comes.”
McLaren F1 Team
Carlos Sainz (P12 in FP2)
Carlos Sainz
“It was a positive Friday with some encouraging pace in the wet and also on the slicks. I’m not entirely sure where we are because we didn’t run the Soft compound in FP2, so we’ll see where we fit tomorrow in the standings.
“The car behaved fairly well and I’m happy with our baseline start. There is always a margin to improve so we’ll work on it tonight.”
Lando Norris (P18 in FP2)
Lando Norris
“A bit of a messy day. FP1 wasn’t bad. The track was drying, so it wasn’t like you could do proper testing. The track was just getting drier and drier. But the car felt pretty good, fairly comfortable and from the bit of wet running we did, I was pretty happy.
“Obviously FP2 was not what we’d planned. I went out for one lap at the beginning but then we had an oil leak, so we had to fix that which meant I could only go out for the last 20 minutes or so, and I used all of those laps just to get up to speed. They were the first few dry laps I did of the day so I wanted to push and feel the limit of the car, but at the same time it was trying to figure out where to brake and things like that. So, on the whole a bit messy, but some productive things.”
Kimi Räikkönen (P14 in FP2)
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Antonio Giovinazzi (P17 in FP2)
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SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team
Lance Stroll (P15 in FP2)
Lance Stroll
"The day was very disrupted because of the weather. We didn’t get much running in so it is hard to tell where we are relative to the other teams. It’s a shame for the fans who came out wanting to see the cars on track.
The mixed conditions made it challenging to run and even when we put the dry tyres on this afternoon it started to drizzle so we will have to wait and see where we really stand. A lot of the guys did their performance run early in the session, when it was dry, but we were on the option tyre at that point. When we went to the qualifying tyre it started to rain so we didn’t show everything today. Let’s see what the data says and where we can improve overnight."
Sergio Pérez (P16 in FP2)
Sergio Pérez
"It was a bad start with a crash on my out lap in FP1. Luckily we didn’t lose any track time in FP2 when the track was a bit drier.
We have a good amount of information for tomorrow and hopefully we’ll be able to close up the gap in qualifying when conditions could be very different."
ROKiT Williams Racing
Robert Kubica (P19 in FP2)
Robert Kubica
"Today the weather was the big player and so we did some running in wet and dry conditions. The pace is as expected, Monza is a very high-speed track and we are not the kings there.
The car felt the best it has done all year, which is surprising as it is a circuit you normally struggle to get right straight away. However, the Italian fans create a good atmosphere and its nice to be back racing in Monza."
George Russel (P20 in FP2)
George Russell
"Today was quite inconvenient with the weather but every lap on track you learn something. FP1 was quite a constructive session for us as we did some back-to-back comparisons with a low downforce wing versus our standard one.
FP2 was quite positive with the long run; I wasn’t very pleased with myself in the low fuel run but overall, I think we made the most of a tricky day."
✅ Check out Lap times 1st practice 2019 Italian F1 GP
✅ Check out Lap times 2nd practice 2019 Italian F1 GP
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