Max Verstappen. — © REUTERS
He did it: Max Verstappen (25) has now also won the GP of Italy, making him the first driver to win ten (!) Formula 1 GPs in a row. An insane record.
On the fastest circuit of them all, with barely eleven corners, we had a fairly quiet start, although there was an incident on the formation lap: the start was delayed by five minutes after Yuki Tsunoda’s (AlphaTauri) engine exploded. The Japanese had to give up before the official start.
Sainz (Ferrari) took pole position on Saturday with thirteen thousandths (!) ahead of Verstappen, but was not able to hold onto that lead for very long. After the quiet start, in which the differences between the top drivers remained very small, Verstappen’s patience was rewarded. On lap fifteen, the Dutchman took advantage of a mistake by Sainz and took over the lead. The race soon seemed to be in a decisive fold, as Verstappen immediately took a large lead.
At Ferrari they already felt the mood: again no party in their own country. The last time a Ferrari driver triumphed at Monza was in 2019, when Charles Leclerc beat Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton. Last year, Leclerc finished second behind Verstappen.
© AP
Verstappen set one fastest lap after another and was eight seconds behind Sainz in no time. Since the GP in Azerbaijan on April 30, the Red Bull driver has won everything. He is now undefeated for ten races. No one ever did it for him. Verstappen equaled Sebastian Vettel’s record from 2013 last weekend in his own country after his ninth triumph in a row.
And it became even more beautiful for Red Bull, because Sergio Perez raced to second place after a great catch-up race. Ferrari and Carlos Sainz have to settle for third place.
The next World Cup round, the GP of Singapore, is scheduled in two weeks (Sunday September 17) at the Marina Bay Street Circuit.