Winners and Losers from the 2024 F1 Italian Grand Prix

He wins in Monza, again. 

Before Charles Leclerc arrived at Ferrari in 2019, it had been nearly a decade since the Tifosi saw one of its beloved Cavallino Rampantes gallop across the line first to win the Italian Grand Prix. 

He's now done it twice after a stunning triumph for his second 'home' win of the season after Monaco. 

The Monaco and Italian Grands Prix as your two wins as a Monegasque Ferrari driver does not get any better - so where better place to start our round-up of Winners and Losers than with the darling of the Tifosi.

Winner - Charles Leclerc

Leclerc has been unfairly criticised by some as a 'pole position merchant' who is rapid over one-lap, but can sometimes struggle to string things together in the race.

But this was a stunning race drive, and one of the best of his career, especially around the time when Oscar Piastri pitted for the second time. 

Leclerc had been careful not to take too much life out of his hard tyres, with the knowledge that the one-stop was possible, but tough given the graining experienced throughout the field.

But rather than going for broke, he nursed the front-left and when he got the clear air and the lead after Piastri stopped, there was nothing to lose in going to the end, with third place the worst possible result. 

In the end, the Tifosi got what it wanted, Leclerc him and F1 another feel good story.

Lando Norris/McLaren

McLaren has to realise that it has a prime opportunity to win the drivers' and constructors' championships and must drop this 'papaya rules' nonsense that feels like management speak for 'we don't want to upset Oscar Piastri.'

Piastri is not going to win the 2024 championship, Lando Norris might just. 

By letting Piastri through in Hungary he lost out on seven extra points to Max Verstappen and by simply not telling Piastri to not attack Norris in Italy, maybe a further 10 if Norris had gone onto win. 

That's simply unforgivable for a team doing so much right at the moment and is riding the crest of a wave with momentum and a car that looks as if it can challenge anywhere. 

But a decision needed to be taken on Saturday night ahead of the race that Piastri is now number two for the rest of the season and Norris be given whatever it takes to win. Opportunities like this do not come around often. 

As for Norris, he wisely backed out of the Turn 4 move on Piastri on the opening lap, risking a collision, but starting on pole, the only place you need to finish is first - anything less is a failure. 

There are still chances to get at Verstappen but a 62 point gap in the drivers' is far bigger than it should have been as F1 leaves Europe for the flyways.

Winner - Ferrari

Ferrari's strategy has come under fire a lot in recent times, but this was expertly judged for a team who whisper it, but might just be in title contention.

To have the guts to go for a one-stop when everyone else around goes for a two and to stick with that conviction smells of something Ferrari's strategy has lacked at times, racer's instinct. 

If you pit again, you come home third, get a nice trophy and everyone smiles. 

Stay out, and you go for the win with nothing to lose and come away with a grand prix victory. 

Ferrari got it right.

Baku and Singapore coming up should also suit the SF-24 package with its kerbs, slow corners and heavy traction zones, all strengths of the package.

It finds itself on 407 points, just 39 behind a floundering Red Bull and 31 behind McLaren. Game on.

Loser - Red Bull

And it all came tumbling down. 

Red Bull is sure that knows what the problem that has stalled its championship-challenge is, but fixing it is another matter.

This was a dreadful weekend with the car locking out the fourth row of the grid and barely any progress made forward, with Verstappen only leap-frogging George Russell after his front-wing change.

Verstappen branded the RB20 as a "monster" and that it was "undriveable" as Red Bull was left scratching their heads.

However, one bright light is that Verstappen only lost eight points to Norris instead of the 20 or more it can have been had he converted pole into the win. 

It could prove a pivotal weekend.

Winner - Franco Colapinto

12th on debut for Franco Colapinto was an outstanding result given his lack of time in the car after replacing Logan Sargeant. 

53 laps of the race was more than he'd ever driven in F1 before, only having a maximum of eight consecutive tours in practice runs. 

He kept the Williams pointing the right direction, showed flashes of being on Alex Albon's pace as he snared two points, and looked to already be at the upper end of what Sargeant was capable of delivering. 

Tougher tests than Monza will await in Azerbaijan and Singapore, but for a start, its a good building block.

Loser - Kevin Magnussen

Now, Kevin Magnussen could have been tagged a winner for a typically gutsy drive in which he nicked the final point by a tenth from Fernando Alonso. 

But the fact he has become the first F1 driver banned under the super-licence points system means he must be a loser.

The move on Pierre Gasly that brought him the final two penalty points needed for a ban was not that egregious, with Gasly even suggesting he might go the stewards to plead Magnussen's case. 

But the stewards quickly confirmed that a race ban for Azerbaijan was coming for a driver who is set to leave F1 at the end of the season.