Charles Leclerc wins Italian GP in Ferrari masterclass as Max Verstappen rages at Red Bull
Charles Leclerc held off the threat of McLaren in a grandstand finish at the Italian Grand Prix.
Charles Leclerc held off the charge of Oscar Piastri to claim a fairytale Italian Grand Prix victory in front of the Tifosi. Lando Norris rounded out the podium, while Max Verstappen finished sixth.
For the second race in a row, Norris started on pole, and for the second race in a row, there was a different name leading at the end of lap one. Piastri surged around the outside at the Della Roggia chicane, catching his team-mate off guard, while Leclerc followed him through on the corner exit.
As the pack settled down, Piastri stretched out his lead over Leclerc to three seconds, while Norris closed down the gap to the Ferrari driver incrementally before pitting to trigger the undercut on lap 15.
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There was a hairy moment for the Brit on the entry to the pit lane. Norris locked up as he attempted to slow down his MCL38 machine, colliding with a bollard on the right-hand side of the track. Fortunately, he did not breach the speed limit.
While it was a close call, Norris’ undercut tactic worked. When Leclerc responded along with Lewis Hamilton on the following lap, he emerged behind the rear wing of the McLaren driver. Piastri followed the trailing duo in on lap 17 and retained the lead with the Williams of Alex Albon sandwiched between himself and his team-mate.
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While the rest of the top eight drivers started on the medium compound tyres, Red Bull’s duo were on the hards. Max Verstappen made good ground running long, but a six-second pit stop neutralised his good work as he emerged from his first stop just ahead of team-mate Sergio Perez.
Norris and Piastri were well-matched for pace during their second stint, but the former started to struggle with his hard compound tyres at the halfway mark of the race. He pitted for fresh hards on lap 33, giving him a lot to do on the final stint.
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Piastri also came in for a second stop, but McLaren were left to reel in a huge Ferrari advantage with Leclerc 16 seconds clear of the Aussie and Carlos Sainz sandwiched in between.
The 23-year-old toiled away at the Monegasque driver but fell a few laps short, granting Leclerc a second dream victory of the season as he followed up his home win in Monaco with another unforgettable moment.
