A week on from the Dutch Grand Prix and Formula 1 heads to its most sustained venue, Monza. The ‘temple of speed’ has defined the thrill in which the sport encompasses, with its thundering action sometimes quelled by the voice of the ‘Tifosi’.
A track that is spent on the throttle for around three quarters of the entire lap, engine performance is crucial, and a low-downforce setup is prioritised. That is because, despite some slow-speed corners, more time is lost by carrying extra drag on the long flat-out sections that define this track layout.
However, there are situations where more draggy cars can steal the show. In 2011, Sebastian Vettel was the slowest driver through the Monza speed trap, yet he took pole position. But that speaks more about that year’s dominance by the German in his Red Bull car.
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The importance of qualifying
You would think that overtaking is seamless with such long straights; well, not exactly. The effect of DRS, which encourages overtaking, is minimised at Monza.
This is because the DRS is reducing less drag, given the aerodynamic setups of the cars at Monza, which have slimmer rear wings anyway. That also shrinks the effect of the slipstream which is not as powerful as previous regulations, because of the specific design of these venturi-floors.
Hence, qualifying should theoretically be important, but no driver has won this race from pole this decade. And only on three occasions since 2018 has the winner started on the front row.
That is, in part, due to the chaos that can transpire. The long run to the first corner, tyre graining and degradation are all limiting factors. So although you should not expect effortless overtakes constantly being made, that is not say the race will be boring, anything but.
May McLaren’s weaknesses be exposed?
One of McLaren’s weak points amid a superb 2025 season has been the mechanical numbness that their drivers feel when heavily braking into slow turns, and such a problem may just be punished by the Monza layout.
If a driver is lacking in feel, at any part of the circuit, that makes their car unpredictable and invites either more errors or compromised corners. This very much thwarted them from taking pole at the Miami Grand Prix. However, the team have made steps to mitigate such a rough edge.
Graining, exaggerated due to the resurfaced track ahead of last year’s race, also hurt McLaren and was, in part, why they opted for the two-stop strategy.
Elsewhere, it may be yet another lottery to see who can claim the places behind, if the Papaya team are to remain in control.
The two McLaren cars in the Zandvoort pit lane.
Both Ferrari and Mercedes will warm to the circuit’s shorter corners, which should not expose their balance limitations. Ferrari particularly excel on shorter and slower corners, and have done throughout this regulation cycle.
Red Bull, however, could be anywhere. They were a distance away from the front, in 2024, when the season seemed to be slipping into oblivion, and their dislike for low-drag circuits and slow corners may not help their quest.
But they won this race in 2022 and ’23, and have Max Verstappen at the wheel.
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