New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\nIl Tempio della Velocit\u00e0 has always been about running as slippery a car as possible to slash drag and maximise straight-line speed, but the impetus has doubled in an age low-drag cars also put less strain on the engine.<\/p>\n
But the lower the drag, the sketchier the performance into the track\u2019s single-file chicanes and medium-speed bends.<\/p>\n
This, after all, is where the drivers make the difference in Monza.<\/p>\n
Whoever can master this new challenge first will stand themselves in good stead to win one of motorsport\u2019s most famous grands prix.<\/p>\n
FERRARI AIMING HIGH AT HOME<\/p>\n
Monza is always circled on Ferrari\u2019s calendar at the start of each season. The closest thing any race has to a home team, the Scuderia intends to pull something special out of the bag even during a season of struggle.<\/p>\n
This season, however, has delivered far more than struggle. Though it\u2019s won only two races, that\u2019s the same count as McLaren and Mercedes from the last six rounds.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s had the speed to win at least another couple in that period too \u2014 though this reads as a pro and a con, for those potential wins were squandered through poor and at times baffling execution.<\/p>\n
If the title ends up being closely run, bizarre off-weekends and what should have been strong circuits in Hungary and the Netherlands will sting.<\/p>\n
But Ferrari doesn\u2019t intend to die wondering. It\u2019s throwing everything at what\u2019s left of the campaign, starting with a new engine this weekend.<\/p>\n
The timing is typical Ferrari but not without logic. Every kilowatt counts here, and grunt has been the team\u2019s biggest weakness.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery little helps,\u201d said Lewis Hamilton, 59 points off the title lead. \u201cEven in the last race [at Zandvoort], on such a short circuit, we were losing 0.4s a lap through the race.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s a huge deficit, and we\u2019ve carried that through the year to this point.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a step forward. It\u2019s not the whole gap that we need \u2014 but we knew that would be the case \u2014 but to see bits coming each weekend, adding to the car, it\u2019s exciting to see that we are pushing and strongly still believe that we\u2019ve got what it takes to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ferrari is also pushing on with yet more upgrades, which it says it has the budget headroom to continue doing until the end of the season \u2014 apparently in contrast with Mercedes, which reckons it\u2019s pretty much out of money.<\/p>\n
Will it be enough to win this weekend?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a stretch given what we know about Ferrari\u2019s lack of straight-line speed, but if the car can look even competitive at a track like this, it will be a boost for upcoming circuits that are more balanced between aerodynamics and power.<\/p>\n
The challenge might be on.<\/p>\n
Drivers relive epic 2025 Bathurst 1000 | 01:29<\/p>\n
McLAREN\u2019S ON A ROLL \u2014 CAN IT KEEP IT UP?<\/p>\n
After a dour start to the season and a long slide backwards, McLaren has recovered to win two grands prix on the bounce, one on either side of the mid-season break, to mark itself as the form team of the middle of the campaign \u2014 and Lando Norris, winner of both events, the top driver of the moment.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s more or less what McLaren promised would happen this season, albeit not quite to this timeline.<\/p>\n
The reigning constructors champion said it would start 2026 with a vanilla, basic car that would then be upgraded heavily. What it didn\u2019t predict was that it would lose months backing away from a dud development concept, which has left it 162 points behind Mercedes \u2014 and Norris 83 points behind Antonelli \u2014 even after those two victories.<\/p>\n
But the scoreline doesn\u2019t negate the form line \u2014 or the history. This is the expert upgrade team of the last two seasons, and its latest round of big upgrades appears to have hit the spot exactly.<\/p>\n
So even if its two wins came at the similarly laid-out Hungaroring and Zandvoort circuits, why shouldn\u2019t we believe that McLaren can permanently contend at the front, picking up where it left off late last year?<\/p>\n
There are, unfortunately for McLaren fans, a few reasons.<\/p>\n
The first is that this year\u2019s car is not competitive in a straight line despite the Mercedes engine. That\u2019s thanks to both draggy aerodynamics and also too-short gear ratios. The latter also knocks on to inefficient charging of the battery because the car is often in a higher gear compared to the works Mercedes, meaning it\u2019s revving less and therefore has less power to redirect to the hybrid motor.<\/p>\n
The second is that the car is also poor in slow-speed corners \u2014 and, in general, the slower the corner, the less competitive the McLaren car. Monza is mostly straights and slow chicanes.<\/p>\n
Norris, though, was upbeat about the prospects of winning three on the bounce.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we\u2019re at the stage where it\u2019s hard to predict where we\u2019re going to be,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just focused, working on the stuff that\u2019s in our control. I\u2019m doing the same.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re clearly in a good place as a whole team at the minute. We know we have things we really have to try and work on and improve, and we\u2019ll see if we\u2019ve been able to make any progress into this weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s another weekend where we want to be hopeful and believe it\u2019s possible. We just have to wait and see.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe goal is to continue the performances we\u2019ve had lately, but we\u2019ll have to see tomorrow how the pace is and see if we can have another good weekend.\u201d<\/p>\n
The team will use its rollover rear wing \u2014 which it\u2019s calling the H-wing owing to the sponsor name on that part of the car \u2014 which should help it to shed drag and boost straight-line speed.<\/p>\n
Norris\u2019s title chance is a longer shot than Hamilton and Ferrari\u2019s, but similar to the home team, if McLaren can look competitive at a track that shouldn\u2019t suit it, it will bode well for the rest of the season.<\/p>\n
Adelaide unveils MotoGP circuit plans | 00:59<\/p>\n
RUSSELL\u2019S BIG CHANCE TO BEAT ANTONELLI<\/p>\n
With title leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli starting at the back of the grid, it falls to George Russell to fly the flag for Mercedes.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a big opportunity for the Mercedes driver, who has looked incapable of building title momentum for himself this season.<\/p>\n
The chance is twofold.<\/p>\n
The first is obvious: put some big points over Antonelli as the home favourite attempts to recover from deep down the order. This is the bare minimum, no matter the result.<\/p>\n
The other is less tangible but no less important: control the weekend.<\/p>\n
Russell has arguably controlled just one weekend all season: Australia, where he was clearly at the head of the field.<\/p>\n
He was also very good in Austria, though Antonelli was arguably quicker in the race.<\/p>\n
The Briton surely won\u2019t have Antonelli to compare with this weekend. At a circuit that should perfectly suit his Mercedes car-engine package, there aren\u2019t many excuses for not bossing Monza.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it doesn\u2019t change anything, because I always want to focus on myself, focus on my limitations and the areas I want to improve,\u201d Russell said. \u201cThe job is still the same, so my approach will be exactly the same.\u201d<\/p>\n
It would be a useful boost of morale after a bruising first half of the season and a Dutch Grand Prix that started promisingly but ended with the same old sight of his teammate finishing ahead of him, somewhat muting reviews of an otherwise generally positive weekend.<\/p>\n
It could also be important for Mercedes. With Antonelli\u2019s recovery unpredictable from the back under these new regulations and Ferrari targeting a strong result with upgrades, Russell could be the only bulwark against the Scuderia taking a big bite out of its title deficit, changing the complexion of the championship race.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not going to be as straightforward as it once was, but I\u2019m hoping to fight for pole and the win again,\u201d he added. \u201cI think there will be a lot of tough competition.\u201d<\/p>\n
It all rests on Russell\u2019s shoulders \u2014 as if he needed any more pressure.<\/p>\n
Brilliant Marquez wins Aragon MotoGP | 01:02<\/p>\n
RED BULL DRIVERS GET A SECOND CHANCE<\/p>\n
Isack Hadjar will skip the second grand prix in a row, having fractured his hand in a training accident during the mid-season break.<\/p>\n
That means Liam Lawson will get a second crack in the Red Bull Racing car, while Yuki Tsunoda gets a second bench call-up for Racing Bulls.<\/p>\n
With another race next weekend, both could see those stints extended to three races.<\/p>\n
Both drivers acquitted themselves very well in Zandvoort, particularly in the context of it being a sprint weekend featuring only one hour of practice.<\/p>\n
Now, though, they get to really sink their teeth into it \u2014 and with the full allocation of three hours of practice to build into a weekend at one of the better-used circuits in European motorsport, there\u2019ll really be nowhere to hide.<\/p>\n
The stakes are unchanged, but the urgency to perform grows more critical with every weekend.<\/p>\n
Lawson has already ticked the box of banishing the demons of his two-race 2025 Red Bull Racing career, but now he\u2019s looking to cement his spot on the 2027 grid. He\u2019s up against Red Bull junior Nikola Tsolov, who is leading the Formula 2 championship, and though the Kiwi has been performing very well at Racing Bulls this season, he knows as well as anyone that the Red Bull driver program moves to its own rhythm.<\/p>\n
Good points and a good comparison with Verstappen will help to seal the deal.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll just try and make the most of it,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an interesting position for me to be in.<\/p>\n
\u201cZandvoort was, being a sprint weekend, obviously quite stressful at times, but overall it was a good weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow I\u2019ve had that, it should be a bit easier to adjust. We also have three practice sessions here. It\u2019s a much more normal weekend, so it\u2019s another good opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Tsunoda the question is existential. His shock Zandvoort cameo might have reinserted him into the battle for Esteban Ocon\u2019s Haas seat; a big result this weekend could see him move up the short list, which is believed to have Formula 2 star Rafael C\u00e2mara at the top.<\/p>\n
The Japanese driver is determined to race somewhere next season, and if the F1 door is closed, that somewhere is likely to be IndyCar \u2014 and once he commits to the stateside switch, it\u2019s hard to see how he makes it back to the grand prix scene.<\/p>\n
This could be his last chance to state his case.<\/p>\n
Bezzecchi smashes all-time lap record | 00:53<\/p>\n
WHAT KIND OF RACE WILL WE GET?<\/p>\n
The greatly reduced top speed of this year\u2019s car-engine combination will change more than just lap time.<\/p>\n
There are expectations the power unit package could create some wacky, unpredictable racing and perhaps the return of the comical spectacle of drivers risking failure to set a qualifying time in pursuit of a slipstream.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not the slipstream effect per se that the drivers will be seeking. The aero effect of reduced air resistance is only a small part of the equation; the lighter workload on the battery when it has less air to push against is believed to be worth much more.<\/p>\n
Antonelli will surely be used to slipstream Russell given his guaranteed low starting position, but Ferrari has traditionally sought the perfect slipstream too. It will be fascinating to see how much the teams risk in the grid-setting session.<\/p>\n
But the race will be more interesting still, because not only will the slipstream situation continue, but the difference in power owing to overtake mode could also shake things up.<\/p>\n
Overtake mode allows a driver within a second of the driver ahead to charge their battery a little more, giving them extra power down the straights. In practice it means they\u2019ll be able to accelerate harder for longer before the hybrid motor runs out of juice.<\/p>\n
At other circuits we\u2019ve seen that generate what some call \u2018yoyo\u2019 racing \u2014 where the overtake mode advantage is swapped from lap to lap, preventing a driver from breaking clear.<\/p>\n
Play it well and a driver could make big gains \u2014 Antonelli will surely be thinking deeply about his energy strategy in the race.<\/p>\n
Play it badly, however, and you could end up stuck in position or slipping backwards.<\/p>\n
This will be a very different Monza to past seasons.<\/p>\n
How it\u2019s different, though, is still to be decided.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tremble before the Temple of Speed? Formula 1\u2019s fastest race at its fastest racetrack will look different this…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":879163,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[573],"tags":[64,63,817,813,816,85],"class_list":["post-879162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-formula-1","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-f1","tag-formula-1","tag-formula1","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=879162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879162\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/879163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=879162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=879162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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