The red flags are out in force, which can only mean we're back with some of F1's most passionate fans just a short distance North of Milan. Though it's one of the most iconic circuits on the calendar, Monza has gained a reputation in recent years as a bit of an anticlimax. Apparently, Kimi Räikkönen didn't get the memo...
Join Rian McDonnell and F1 novice Joe Molloy as they stumble and joke their way through each round of the Formula 1 World Championship.
Show Notes
Friday brought your typical quiet free practice sessions, with teams running all the routine tests. Marcus Ericsson was running a very special test of what happens when your DRS breaks and you flip your car 4 times. Turns out, you walk away, though we doubt he'll be eager to run that test a second time...
The race weekend continued to excite after the crash, with plenty of drama during Saturday's qualifying session. Kimi Räikkönen delivered F1's fastest ever lap, which is an awesome fact unless you're Joe.
Points are won on Sunday though, and the race left us with plenty to talk about. Though we talked a lot about Mercedes' fantastic strategy work on the Foolcast, there's definitely still more to hear, and we think the team's Pure Pit Wall video is a good place to start.
The busy race meant we didn't get a chance to talk about everything, so here's a few things we didn't get around to.
We talked a bit on the Foolcast about how Ricciardo's engine blew up, which is interesting considering it wasn't actually his engine. But hey, it was a fun conversation. If you want to know what actually happened, check out Autosport's explanation. That'll teach you to come here for facts...
Verstappen seemed certain his assassination attempt on Valteri Bottas (wingman extraordinaire) should have gone unpunished. Elsewhere, Seb Vettel seems to have been lucky to escape a penalty after what looks like a pretty clear case of unsafe release. Is there an innuendo to be made about the phrase "unsafe release?" Probably, but we're lazy.
Even when the race had finished the drama wasn't over. After Renault complained, Romain Grosjean was disqualified from the race for an illegal floor. It'll probably be a refreshing change for Grosjean to score 0 points without having to go to the trouble of crashing his car.
If, like Rian, you actually enjoy reading long articles about obscure technical regulations, you can check out Autosport's explanation of what happened.
Beyond this weekend, the Driver market is slowly showing signs of settling into some sort of order, but not without a few more twists and turns. A move to Ferrari for Leclerc seems to be back on the table, & Stoffel Vandoorne is sadly losing his seat at McLaren. Silly season is coming to a close, but quite how it will end remains to be seen.