There are no miracles in Formula 1 and this maxim also sounded this Sunday in Monza, where the Tifosi arrived en masse, delighted by the pole position awarded to Carlos Sainz on Saturday thanks to one of the best laps of his life. Despite the Spaniard’s hard work, the Ferrari he drives is not enough to keep the Red Bull at bay, the car many consider the most dominant of all time. Even less so when the driver is Max Verstappen, a unique competitor as his numbers make clear. The current champion took another Sunday stroll, this time in Italy, where he scored his tenth consecutive victory, a new absolute record. Although the Red Bull driver failed to overtake Sainz at the start, he slowly built his attack for the lead, which accelerated on lap 15 after several bumps, reinforced by the effect of the mobile rear wing (DRS). For Mad Max, this is the twelfth of 14 released into the game. The other two bear the signature of Checo Pérez, his teammate in the Red Buffalo team, who continues to destroy everything and has not stopped winning since the last test of last season (Abu Dhabi).
In Monza, the Dutchman and the Mexican stripped the Ferrari of complete freedom from the liveliest version of Sainz, who defended himself with everything he could, especially when braking, against both the two Red Bulls and Charles Leclerc, his garage neighbor had the car thrown at him in the final battle between the two for the podium. The knife duel between the red cars was ultimately won by the Madrid driver, who widened his car as much as possible in a scuffle that was as attractive to the spectators as it was unnecessary for the Scuderia’s interests. This is the first time that Sainz has climbed into the pits so far this calendar and the fourth time that the Il Cavallino Rampante brand has done so, which thanks to this result and Fernando Alonso’s slip – he finished ninth – finished third Place taken The statistics are reserved for the manufacturers, especially Aston Martin.
Almost everything has been said and written about Red Bull. Also from Ferrari. The energetic team achieved their sixth double of the season in Monza. They are all the result of the brutal blow of the RB19, combined with the success of the strategists who set the roadmap from the wall. At the Scuderia it is difficult to interpret the plan that is applied in each race, as its fans reiterated. Despite finishing comfortably in third (Sainz) and fourth (Leclerc), the Italian team left its two drivers struggling in the final five laps. When Pérez managed to overtake Sainz (lap 46 of 51), the boy from Guadalajara took off, leaving his rival entirely to the appetites of the Monegasque, always ready to make it clear who was in charge in Maranello. In many moments, Leclerc’s aggressiveness down the stretch exceeded reasonable limits among his teammates, for whom nothing is at stake other than position.
“Guys, let’s put this together and take it home,” said Sainz in response to the enthusiasm of his colleague, who was about to wear it, in what could have been the saddest result of a weekend that started off great for Ferrari.
You can follow EL PAÍS Deportes on Facebook and Twitteror sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.