F1 Italian Grand Prix 2021

Much like several other circuits in Europe, the Italian Grand Prix precedes Formula 1 itself. Located just outside the city of Milan, Monza is the fastest on the F1 calendar with the cars averaging over 260 km/h a lap. Also called the cathedral of speed, Monza is one of Formula 1’s most iconic venues and the home race for the sport’s oldest team, Ferrari, while also serving as the home race for the Alpha Tauri team, who incidentally attained their two wins in the sport at the hallowed racetrack.

While the original version of the circuit featured a banking configuration mixed with a road configuration, from the 1962 season onwards the event was run strictly on the road course, which is pretty much similar to the modern-day version of the track.

Owing to the nature of the track, the Grand Prix at Monza has seen some of the closest finishes in Formula 1 most notably in 1971 when Peter Gethin won the race by a mere .010 of a second from Ronnie Peterson, to make things even more remarkable the top 5 were separated by .061 of a second at the finish.

Known mainly for its straights, some of the circuit’s more notable corners are; the Curve di Lesmo, which are a pair of right-hand turns, the Variante Ascari chicane, and the legendary Curva Parabolica.

The Italian Grand Prix has also been known to claim a fair share of casualties most notably Jochen Rindt in 1970, who remains Formula 1’s only champion who was crowned posthumously.

Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton are two of the most successful drivers at Monza having won the race a record five times. Three-time World Champion, Nelson Piquet has won the race four times and stands second on the list with luminaries such as Tazio Nuvolari, Juan Manuel Fangio, and Alberto Ascari winning the race three times each.

Finally and most important of all, Monza remains Ferrari’s home race and for that reason, the atmosphere at the venue is hard to match with the ‘Tifosi’ often flooding the track at the conclusion of an event, more so if a Ferrari driver finishes on the podium.

The Italian Grand Prix 2020
The Italian Grand Prix in 2020 was one of the most memorable races of the season with Pierre Gasly winning his first race and France gaining its first Grand Prix winner since Olivier Panis at the Monaco Grand Prix.

After a standard qualifying session, which saw Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas lock out the front row the race was thrown into complete pandemonium when the Safety Car was brought out to retrieve a stranded Haas car and Hamilton made a pitstop when the pitlane was closed.

To compound matters, Charles Leclerc crashed heavily into the Parabolica bringing out the red flag. Post the restart Hamilton had to serve a stop-go penalty and through the ensuing commotion, Pierre Gasly found himself leading the race followed by Carlos Sainz and Lance Stroll an order they would finish the race in.

When is the 2021 Italian Grand Prix on the F1 calendar?
The 2021 race is scheduled between September 10-12 and is provisionally set to be the 14th race in the 2021 F1 season. The first free practice session will take place on September 10 followed by qualifying. The second practice session begins the day on Saturday followed by the second Sprint Qualifying event at 16:30CET.

What time does the Italian Grand Prix start?
The Italian Grand Prix starts on Sunday, September 12 at 15:00 CET. The race can be followed live on RacingNews365’s blog and via television on Sky Italia and TV8.