Formula 1: Charles Leclerc wins 2019 Italian Grand Prix

Charles Leclerc secured Ferrari their first Italian Grand Prix victory since the 2010 Formula 1 season, holding off challenges from both Mercedes drivers.

Charles Leclerc is the driver the Tifosi have been waiting for.

The first-year Scuderia Ferrari driver delivered the Italian faithful their first Italian Grand Prix victory since Fernando Alonso won the race in the 2010 Formula 1 season, ending their longest ever drought of failing to win at Autodromo Nazionale Monza.

Leclerc started this 53-lap race around the 11-turn, 3.600-mile (5.794-kilometer) Autodromo Nazionale Monza road course in Monza, Italy from the pole position, and he held off Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport’s Valtteri Bottas on newer and faster tires in second place by 0.835 seconds.

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Leclerc, who went on to hard tires on his pit stop, also held off a separate challenge from Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, who ultimately could not manage his medium tires throughout the remainder of the race after failing to pass the 21-year-old Monegasque.

Leclerc, Hamilton and Bottas all made separate mistakes in their battles with one another throughout the race, but it was Leclerc who ultimately prevailed. Renault experienced their best race in quite some time with Daniel Ricciardo finishing in fourth place and Nico Hulkenberg finishing in fifth.

Aston Martin Red Bull Racing rookie Alexander Albon, SportPesa Racing Point’s Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen, Alfa Romeo Racing rookie Antonio Giovinazzi and McLaren rookie Lando Norris rounded out the top 10 by finishing in sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th place, respectively.

This race featured two lead changes, first when Bottas took the lead after Hamilton and Leclerc pit one lap apart from one another and second when Leclerc retook the lead after Bottas came into the pits for medium tires. Bottas closed down what was more than a 10-second gap to Leclerc, but he was unable to get the job done. Leclerc ended up leading 45 of the race’s 53 laps with Bottas leading the other eight.

Of the 20 drivers who started the race, 17 finished it and eight finished on the lead lap. Rich Energy Haas’ Kevin Magnussen, Scuderia Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat and McLaren’s Carlos Sainz Jr. were all forced to retire from the race.

Scuderia Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel finished one lap off the lead lap in 13th place after spinning out and then hitting SportPesa Racing Point’s Lance Stroll, resulting in a 10-second stop-go penalty. This effectively gave Mercedes a strategy advantage with two drivers to challenge for the victory compared to Ferrari’s one, but neither strategy ended up working.

Here are the full race results of the 2019 Italian Grand Prix at Autodromo Nazionale Monza.

Race Results
1st – Charles Leclerc
2nd – Valtteri Bottas
3rd – Lewis Hamilton
4th – Daniel Ricciardo
5th – Nico Hulkenberg
6th – Alexander Albon
7th – Sergio Perez
8th – Max Verstappen
9th – Antonio Giovinazzi
10th – Lando Norris
11th – Pierre Gasly
12th – Lance Stroll
13th – Sebastian Vettel
14th – George Russell
15th – Kimi Raikkonen
16th – Romain Grosjean
17th – Robert Kubica
18th – Kevin Magnussen
19th – Daniil Kvyat
20th – Carlos Sainz Jr.

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Formula 1 action is scheduled to get back underway on Sunday, September 22 with the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay Street Circuit in Marina Bay, Singapore. This race is set to be broadcast live on ESPN2 beginning at 8:05 a.m. ET.

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