2025 Formula 1 Italian GP
F1 Italian GP Live Updates – Media Day
Follow along for news and updates from the Italian Grand Prix paddock and the whispering trees of Monza
Live Text
AND IT'S GOODNIGHT FROM US...
That's it for media day in Monza. Join us again tomorrow as the jibber-jabber stops and the action starts!
SAINZ OF THE TIMES
Williams has confirmed that it has filed a right of review claim over Carlos Sainz's 10-second penalty during the Dutch Grand Prix.
You'll recall the penalty came about because Carlos tried to overtake Liam Lawson's Racing Bulls around the outside into Turn 1 at Zandvoort, and he ran out of road. The 'racing guidelines' state that in these circumstances the driver on the inside does not have to give up room .
At the time, Sainz described the penalty as "the worst joke I've ever heard", which confirms he's never been to a Russell Brand stand-up comedy gig.
Carlos Sainz, Williams
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / LAT Images via Getty Images
CAN NORRIS WIN THE TITLE WITHOUT 'BAD LUCK' FOR PIASTRI?
Yesterday we pondered what the world championship would look like if an old rule of how championship points were calculated was still in force. Today Lando Norris has piped up and said he can close the 34-point gap to team-mate Oscar Piastri without Oscar suffering 'bad luck'.
"I can still win the championship without anything happening and that's the way I wish to do it," Norris reckoned. "It would certainly make my life easier if there were just some more drivers in between every now and then.
"The thing is we're so dominant as a team that it almost makes my life harder. So, that's really the most frustrating part of it all."
By that, of course, he means that generally the McLaren drivers are likely to finish 1-2 barring incident or the incongruous presence of Max Verstappen between them, since he seems to be the only driver able to do the job these days...
Lando Norris, McLaren
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
On the subject of that trophy, in case you missed it, we've 'delft' into the facts of the matter and they're making a new one for Isack. No superglue will be involved.
Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Kym Illman / Getty Images
FROM OUR WTF DEPARTMENT
We find ourselves wondering what this item might be. If underwear, we hope the item has been laundered.
Perhaps a piece of splintered Royal Delft ceramic?
Spare us the madness…
PIASTRI SITS ON THE FENCE
While other drivers have been harrumphing about F1's proposals to have more sprints, shorter races, reverse grids, and qualifying order determined by a game of spin the bottle (okay, we made that last one up), championship leader Oscar Piastri gave the question a firm boot into the long grass.
"I don't really have a strong opinion about it," said Piastri in his Thursday press call.
"I think it kind of depends on the race. There's some races where the race could be six hours and nothing's going to happen, and then there's some that you wish you had an extra 20 laps to have something happen."
What would it take for this man to have a strong opinion about something? What do we think he might feel strongly about? Whether Taylor Swift's re-recorded albums are better than the originals? Whether it's a travesty that Ultravox's Vienna was kept off the UK number one spot in 1981 by Joe Dolce's Shaddap You Face? Whether tomatoes have any place in a burger? Whether Pierce Brosnan is seriously miscast in The Thursday Murder Club?
Oscar Piastri, McLaren
Photo by: Gabriele Lanzo / Alessio Morgese / NurPhoto via Getty Images
"TOUGH BUT FAIR"
Also from that Max media session we mentioned earlier, there was some discussion about Lewis Hamilton's travails at Ferrari and whether Verstappen would ever want to go to Maranello himself.
That's 'go to Maranello' not in the sense of a day trip to the Ferrari museum but to actually drive for Ferrari in F1. And Max's take was that driving for Ferrari just because it's Ferrari is a lousy idea.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Photo by: Erik Junius
RANDOM WHATSAPP OF THE DAY
While all this has been going on, a chum pings over a message to enquire "Why, and how, did Leonard Rossiter end up in 2001?"
Well this is a fascinating question indeed. Rossiter was perhaps best known for his roles in the sitcoms Rising Damp and The Fall And Rise Of Reginald Perrin, but he was also a serious thesp whom Stanley Kubrick had also cast in Barry Lyndon. Can any other readers impart wisdom on this subject? Let us know in the comments.
Aaaaaand back to matters pertaining to the Italian GP.
PICTURES OF THE DAY
Our photo desk has been just as busy as the scribblers in the paddock, curating the best images from Thursday at Monza.
"A picture is worth a thousand words," they say. In that case I'll just put up another picture and not write any more of this twaddle.
A general view of the track surroundings
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images
VERSTAPPEN: NO TO MORE "CRAZY" SPRINT RACES
You may recall our news story from yesterday in which F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali outlined various plans for F1's future including more sprint races and shorter grands prix. He reckoned most of the drivers who despised the idea previously were now on side, including Max.
"Hold my Hertog Jan," says Max. (Well, strictly speaking, he didn't – nice beer by the way, even if pronouncing it properly involves making a noise like a cat barfing up a furball).
Here's what Verstappen actually said about F1's growth and the attempts by the commercial rights holder to milk it even further: "Yes, I see the positives. People are making more money.
"But for me personally, I mean, I've talked about it many times. You know my opinion about it. But I also understand why they do it. To also make it a more exciting product on the day.
"Because I can understand, of course, when fans come to the track, it's more exciting to see cars race than just lap around in practice. For us, it's still very important to have practice. But I understand from a fan's point of view that it can be a bit boring.
"But F1 has been like this since the 1950s. So I understand that sports evolve and stuff like that. But we shouldn't go too crazy. I think a sprint race is already, from my side, crazy enough.
"You all know how I think about sprint races, but the [current] length of the race, I think it's fine. I mean, yeah, sometimes one and a half hours, sometimes closer to [two].
"In other sports as well, sometimes you have an exciting game, sometimes absolutely boring and you fall asleep. That's sport for you – you cannot always make it exciting, because if it's always exciting, it becomes boring too."
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Clive Rose / Getty Images
WILLIAMS AND SAINZ PITCHING RIGHT OF REVIEW?
Speaking the FIA press conference earlier, Carlos Sainz appeared to indicate that he and the Williams team were going to lodge a 'right to review' appeal against his penalty in Zandvoort.
"I did get the chance to go and speak to them [the stewards] after the race," he said.
"There was a misunderstanding while I was in the TV pen whether I thought they were, or I was not going to be able to go, but in the end, I had the opportunity to go and sit with them for 15 minutes to analyze the incident.
"And it was very clear to me that as soon as they got all the evidence, and they look at the places that they would have needed to look at to take the right decision, it was very clear to me that I think they realized that probably the decision taken wasn't the best one.
"Now we are trying to see if we can come up with enough evidence and enough stuff to realize if we can change the outcome of the penalty, because I still firmly believe it was a very poor penalty that I received and a bad judgment, which can happen as long as you have the capacity to revisit it, and if there's been a misunderstanding or a lack of evidence or a lack of analysis, then there is still time to reanalyze it, to reopen it, and change it.
"I do believe they had a very difficult Sunday looking back at it. They had a very busy afternoon, and if it was overwhelming because of the amount of stuff that happened in the race, I still firmly believe what I thought after the race, obviously I'm now in a much cooler-headed state, but I still firmly believe what happened was and the penalty was not acceptable, and I made it very clear."
Fine words but obviously it is very difficult to lodge such an appeal because the bar has been set very high. Principally the person seeking right of review has to prove they have 'new' evidence which was not available to the stewards at the time.
Carlos Sainz, Williams
Photo by: Bryn Lennon / Formula 1 / Getty Images
In other ICYMI news, Isack Hadjar was talking earlier about his putative move to Red Bull Racing and what the ideal timing would be.
NARRATOR: It isn't right now, that's for sure.
As you can see in our image, the poor lamb has got the Netflix crew and the 'boom of doom' hanging around like a bad smell this week, shooting acres more footage they're destined never to use...
Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Rudy Carezzevoli - Getty Images
THE BOY DUNNE GOOD
In case you missed it, Oscar Piastri will be missing Free Practice 1 at Monza (hark! We hear the sound of tinfoil hats crackling). McLaren junior driver Alex Dunne will be in Piastri's MCL39 to fulfil the team's obligations to run rookie drivers in FP1 on four occasions during the season.
Those whose tinfoil hats are crackling would do well to remember than Dunne drove Lando Norris's car in FP1 in Austra. So there.
If you don't know who Dunne is – well, firstly you haven't been watching F2 this year, have you?
Dunne finished second to Kimi Antonelli in the 2022 Italian F4 championship, which he dovetailed with a successful British F4 campaign.
Alex Dunne, McLaren
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
COLA ME OPTIMISTIC
Embattled Alpine driver Franco Colapinto has been talking in the official FIA press conference. He's had a rollercoaster 12 months after stepping into the Williams in place of Logan Sargeant, initially impressing before ending the 2024 season with some high-profile blunders.
After being parachuted in at Alpine in place of Jack Doohan earlier this year he's struggled to get to grips with the car – not helped by lack of development since the team has long since pivoted towards 2026.
Last weekend team boss Flavio Briatore said he had perhaps made a mistake putting too much pressure on Colapinto. Young drivers mature at different rates. Nevertheless Colapinto remains highly rated by those who have worked with him – at the same press conference, Williams boss James Vowles spoke up for him.
"I feel much more in control, starting to be just more confident with the car and I'm gaining that feeling that I had last year very quickly," said Colapinto today.
"I didn't have it [the 'feeling'] this year so early on and I think now the team, my engineers really helped me to get that back a little bit. We're still working on it really hard because it's not where we want to be, we are doing a lot of progress with the car, but I think generally it's been much better the last few races.
"A bit more competitive and, yeah, we showed that we were very close to the points [last week in Zandvoort], so still a lot of work to be done. This track, it can be quite hard for us with the long straights, but I think if we take all the opportunities available we can have a good weekend."
Franco Colapinto, Alpine
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Sutton Images via Getty Images
TWO WHEELS BETTER
If you thought former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner's job these days was just to be himself, think again (sort of). Tomorrow he will formally be announced as the new owner of the Tech 3 MotoGP team.
The deal had already been agreed bar the signing ahead of the summer break, and now the various parties of the first part have had time to visit their local stationery emporium, acquire some pens, and apply them to paper.
Steiner is heading a consortium rather than putting all of his own money in, but he is very much the figurehead because of his massive media profile – a factor of the makers of Drive to Survive being unable to resist including his expletive-filled rants. Arguably Haas enjoyed a far greater profile on the show than a back-of-the-grid team warranted during his tenure.
MotoGP has bold plans for audience growth now that Liberty Media is a majority shareholder in the series promoter, Dorna.
Gunter Steiner
Photo by: Andreas Beil
WHISPERING TREES
It would be remiss of us to report from Monza and not include a shot of the old banking. Evocative it may be, but it was used only infrequently during its life. The original (1922) banked section was demolished in 1938 and rebuilt in 1955, but many competitors had little appetite for it on safety grounds (it was hard on the tyres of the day, too). But it was used for two intriguing 'Monzanapolis' races where the grand prix world actually connected with the Indycar scene.
For the three times the banking was used in the Italian Grand Prix, it formed part of a combined, road/oval course in which the cars exited the Parabolica, came past the pits, then joined the oval section and looped back onto the start-finish straight.
After the 1960 Italian GP it was never used in F1 again but a handful of sportscar events ran on it, finishing with the 1969 Monza 1000kms. Sadly there was no Ferrari victory on that day – Jo Siffert and Brian Redman won in a long-tail Porsche 908. In fourth place was a Ford GT40 driven by Helmut Kelleners and Reinhold Joest, later to become a serial Le Mans winner as a team manager.
A general view of the old banking
Photo by: Steven Tee / LAT Images via Getty Images
THE OLD SWITCHEROO
Speaking on F1's Beyond the Grid podcast, Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseu has opened up about the challenges of integrating Lewis Hamilton into the team this year. He mused over whether he underestimated how difficult it would be for Lewis to make the move to Ferrari after spending all his F1 career with two British-based teams.
"It's a complete change for him in his life," said Fred.
Frederic Vasseur, Ferrari
Photo by: John Thys / AFP via Getty Images
GASLY BUSINESS
It's five years since Pierre Gasly registered that marvellous win in a disrupted Italian Grand Prix. It was the beginning of the rest of his career after a miserable time at Red Bull Racing (a common theme).
"Every day I wake up at home, I have my trophy that I see when I take my coffee in the morning," he said when asked to reflect on that day.
"It's a nice energy, good motivation. Obviously now it's been five years, it's enough time and I want another one! But Monza will always remain special."
Anniversaries are very much a 'route one' line of questioning. Another - this weekend at least - concerns driving etiquette and the 'guidelines' after the controversial penalty for Carlos Sainz last week. As noted below, Sainz and Liam Lawson are very much in Top of the Pops 1979 mode now (perhaps they should be introduced by David 'Kid' Jensen), but there are serious questions about whether a driver launching an overtake around the outside has any 'right' to be given space.
"I think they [the guidelines] were working pretty much fine," said Pierre.
"But I must say I'm slightly confused and this will need some talking tomorrow night [in the regular drivers' briefing]. I think it was all clear to me until that situation [in Zandvoort] which didn't seem that straightforward. So we're gonna discuss about it."
Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri, 1st position, sits down on the podium to contemplate his victory
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
INCREDIBLE HULK
Nico Hulkenberg was in a typically playful mood during his Thursday press call, teasing German journo Christian Menath, who is usually at the head of the queue.
"Hello!" he said. "Why don't you start, Menath? I can see you have something on your lips..."
Sadly the question itself is inaudible on our recording. Our man Jake Boxall Legge really needs to get one of those annoying boom doohickeys with which some scribes turn up.
Now, along with the Audi branding next season, the Sauber team will have a new motorhome. 'Yeah, so what?' you say. But this motorhome is so old it's on the cusp of acquiring listed-building status – it first appeared when BMW owned the team back in the mid-2000s. With the 'flyaways' beckoning, it will be packed up for the last time this weekend. Hulk is sorry to see it go.
"It served, I think, us and the team well," he said. "20 years, and I think considering that, she's in pretty good nick, good space.
"Yeah, it's true that this is the last one, and I think so, yeah. A lot of, obviously, stories have taken place here.
"So 20 years, I don't know what's the number, how many grands prix it did, but obviously a fair amount. Definitely, it's going to be a little bit emotional."
Here's a shot of what it looked like the last time anybody seems to have taken the trouble to photograph it, back in 2023 when Sauber was competing as Alfa Romeo.
The Sauber motorhome as seen in 2023
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
IT'S SO FUNNY WHY WE DON'T TALK ANYMORE
Back in 1979 Sir Cliff Richard had a number one hit in the UK with We Don't Talk Anymore (sadly it peaked at number 7 in the Billboard Hot 100 and got no higher than 13 in Italy), a tale of a failing relationship couched in somewhat passive-aggressive phraseology rather unbecoming of a knight of the realm, but these were the 1970s I suppose. Actually Sir Cliff was only an OBE at the time, but that's not important right now.
Songwriter Alan Tarney subsequently took up residence behind the mixing desk and was responsible for producing the version of Take On Me by A-Ha which actually became a hit, but this is equally unimportant right now.
Arriving at the point by a circuitous route, last weekend Liam Lawson and Carlos Sainz found themselves disputing the same piece of asphalt and Sainz, somewhat controversially, was penalised – despite it appearing that Lawson had hit him rather than the other way around. But that is how F1's current rules of engagement are laid out.
When apprised of his penalty, Sainz described it as "the worst joke I ever heard". There speaks a man who has never attended a West End production of Run For Your Wife. But we digress again.
Despite Sainz's vociferousness on the day, it appears he and Lawson haven't actually discussed the issue.
"I haven't heard from him," Lawson told the media today. "I would have thought because of how upset he was, he would probably want to talk about it, but he hasn't."
Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / LAT Images via Getty Images
WHEN IS A DOOR NOT A DOOR? WHEN IT'S HADJAR
Isack Hadjar's stock has never been higher in F1 after his smoothly accomplished podium finish at Zandvoort last weekend. Obviously there are many questions hanging in the air since he finished right behind Max Verstappen, while Max's Red Bull Racing team-mate Yuki Tsunoda finished...
Hang on a second while we look this up...
...
...
...
Ah yes, 10th, that was it.
So, besides various nitwittery around whether Max would actually have been better off driving the Racing Bulls car this year rather than the tetchy RB21, there have been natural questions over when/if Hadjar could be promoted to the senior team. And whether he would want to go – or, rather, when he would want to be promoted, since driving the RB21 is a career-limiting poison chalice unless your name is Max Verstappen.
Our man Ronald Vording pitched this question to Isack: "Some months ago you said, 'I'm not sure if I would be ready to step to Red Bull Racing.' How is that now? Do you feel ready for Red Bull in 26 and if so, what has changed in the last couple of months?"
Hadjar replied: "To be honest, at the start of the year, they were asking me if I was feeling ready to jump in the Red Bull this year. And the answer is still no, because I don't see the point of doing that right now.
"But '26 is a different question because it's a brand new start for the team.There won't be this talk of the second car thing. This wouldn't be a thing because it's a brand new car for everyone.
"You will be in a phase where you need to direct the car into the right direction. So no, I think this is actually interesting."
He also said of the putative promotion: "It's obviously something I have in mind. There's nine races left to prove I can keep doing a very good job."
And also: "If I start getting beaten every race weekend until the end of the year, then it's not going to be good for me."
Hadjar emphasised that he's "not in a rush" to nail down a 2026 deal.
Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
Photo by: Anni Graf - Formula 1 via Getty Images
COLTON HERTA TO CADILLAC AND F2
Meanwhile, you might have heard about Cadillac announcing Colton Herta as its F1 test driver, but he's also going to move to F2 next season. After 17 years at Team Penske, Will Power is going to replace Herta at Andretti Global in IndyCar.
BENVENUTI A MONZA
Thanks for joining us from la pista magica, Monza, the hallowed speedbowl...
Plenty to digest from last weekend as well as looking forward to the Italian GP action. Can Lando Norris bounce back from his oil-leak-related setback last weekend? We also have news from Cadillac. But of course, Monza is always about Ferrari, and the Scuderia (not pronounced scooder-ear, despite what various members of the commentariat might say) has done us proud by unveiling a special colorway to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Niki Lauda winning the 1975 world championship in Mauro Forghieri's marvelous 312T.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
Photo by: Ferrari
By: Stuart Codling
