Italian Grand Prix LIVE: Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton are set to battle at Monza (Image: GETTY)
Italian Grand Prix LIVE updates
- Lights out in Monza at 2.10pm
- Charles Leclerc starts on pole position from Lewis Hamilton
- Valtteri Bottas and Sebastian Vettel on the second row
- Max Verstappen starts in his Red Bull from the back after taking an engine penalty
13/53: Sebastian Vettel gets a 10 second stop/go penalty and serves it immediately.
Unsurprisingly he makes no protest and he is now dead last at the Italian Grand Prix. Not a good afternoon so far for the former world champion.
Italian Grand Prix LIVE: Sebastian Vettel caused Lance Stroll to spin (Image: GETTY)
12/53: Sergio Perez is right on the back of Kevin Magnussen in the battle for 10th with the Dane struggling in his Haas.
Meanwhile at the front both Mercedes are in touch with Charles Leclerc and if they work together here it could be a good afternoon for them.
Lewis Hamilton currently 1.3 seconds behind Leclerc.
7/53: Carnage as Sebastian Vettel spins his Ferrari and then completely takes out Lance Stroll when coming back onto the track.
Stroll then repeats and almost ends the race for Pierre Gasly.
Amateur hour at Monza apparently.
4/53: Alex Albon is sent onto the gravel by Carlos Sainz in the McLaren.
The Red Bull driver had briliantly past the Spaniard but he was retaken and squeezed Albon out.
I fancy the Thai man should have pulled out there and instead he has dropped down to 11th. Breathless stuff!
2/53: Sebastian Vettel gets past Nico Hulkenberg quickly and that is key for Ferrari.
DRS is now enabled.
LAP 1/53: Charles Leclerc sees off the challenge of Lewis Hamilton but it isn’t good news for his Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel.
The Renault of Nico Hulkenberg manages to get the Ferrari!
And at the back of the field Max Verstappen has lost his front wing. It is going to be a long afternoon for the Dutchman.
LIGHTS OUT: It’s go, go, go in Monza!
FORMATION LAP: All the drivers are away safely as mechanics sprint across the grid.
Charles Leclerc leads them away.
2.05pm: The atmosphere is building now in Monza as we are taken through the grid, the tyre options and some of the historic moments previously at the race.
With the penalties dished out it could be interesting with the likes of Max Verstappen, Lando Norris and Kimi Raikkonen trying to work their way through the grid.
Italian Grand Prix LIVE: Monza is ready for the final European race of the season (Image: GETTY)
2pm: Just 10 minutes until lights out at Monza then and here’s a reminder of the top 10 on the grid.
Top 10: Leclerc, Hamilton, Bottas, Vettel, Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Sainz, Albon, Stroll, Giovinazzi.
Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto reckons it could be an interesting start.
He said: “That’s the grid but maybe it will not be the relative positions in the first corner!
“The start will be the key of the race and it’s a long way to the first corner. But more than that will be the pace in the race and the tyres.
“Certainly it’s doing their own race [for the drivers]. Hopefully both can finish the race today and that will be strong enough.”
1.50pm: Patrice Evra is in Monza ready to enjoy the Italian Grand Prix.
Didier Drogba and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang were both in attendance yesterday as the international break takes over in football.
Looks like the former Manchester United man is ready to enjoy his afternoon.
1.40pm: Kimi Raikkonen will start the race from the pit lane it has been announced after making changes to his Alfa Romeo car.
It has been a weekend to forget so far for the former F1 world champion.
And this track provides us with one of the most exciting starts of the season with a big braking zone into a chicane to start the race.
Lewis Hamilton actually touched Sebastian Vettel here last year.
1.30pm: Ahead of the race Paul di Resta has been speaking on the problems Sebastian Vettel faces at Ferrari.
“He’s clearly not happy with the car and not connecting with it as much as he did,” he said.
“Before that run that Leclerc’s on at the moment, it was actually the other way. I get the feeling yesterday he was in a very good place, a bit frustrated he didn’t get that tow and the speed that he could have jumped Charles.
“What he needs to do today to show the four-time world champion that he is. I think Ferrari will show loyalty with him until he comes good again.”
Lewis Hamilton was involved in a shambolic qualifying session in Italy (Image: GETTY)
1.15pm: A reminder what Lewis Hamilton said on that qualifying session by the way.
“I have to be grateful I am on the front row,” said the world champion.
“We get to have a fight with the Ferraris tomorrow. We split them and it is a nice position to be in. We can give them a good fight.
“It was a bit of an anti-climax at the end but it is crazy with this system we now have and they basically timed us out.
“On the out lap it is dangerous. You don’t know who’s slowing down and who’s alongside you. It is risky business but it is enjoyable at the same time.”
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff added: “The problem was everyone wants a slipstream and nobody wants to go first… and then everyone looks like idiots.”
1pm: Good afternoon and welcome to our live coverage of the Italian Grand Prix from Monza.
We saw quite ridiculous scenes in qualifying yesterday with only Carlos Sainz setting a time at the end of the session as nobody wanted to give another car a tow.
But the result stood and Charles Leclerc starts on pole position as he looks for his second straight win.
The Ferrari man picked up his first victory in Formula One last week of course at an emotional Belgian Grand Prix following the tragic death of Anthoine Hubert.