2015 Italian Grand Prix

Championship standings

Hamilton leads by 28 points over Rosberg, with Vettel a further 39 points back in third.

Previous race

Hamilton won in Belgium from Rosberg, with Grosjean taking third after Vettel’s right-rear tyre exploded on the Kemmel straight two laps from the finish. Vettel was scathing in his criticism of Pirelli, saying that had the failure occurred “200 metres earlier, I am not standing here now.” Pirelli’s subsequent investigation attributed the damage to debris rather than structural failure.

Between-race developments

The Lotus team, whose cars were under threat of impoundment by bailiffs at Spa, manage to recover their cars and travel to Italy for this race. Despite ongoing financial difficulties, the team confirm they have sufficient funds to complete the season.

Williams confirm they will retain Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas for the 2016 season. Nico Hülkenberg signs a new two-year deal to remain at Force India.

The future of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza is an additional talking point, with the event at risk of being dropped from the calendar for financial reasons. Sebastian Vettel speaks out in favour of the venue ahead of the weekend.

Car upgrades

Ferrari use three development tokens to upgrade their engine for their home race. Mercedes, in turn, use all seven of their remaining engine development tokens, becoming the first team in 2015 to exhaust their allocation. Both Ferrari cars are on their fourth power unit of the season; both Mercedes cars are on their third. McLaren revert to their snub nose design — replaced earlier in the season — to optimise aerodynamics for Monza’s high-speed layout. Red Bull, Toro Rosso, and McLaren carry grid penalties for exceeding parts allowances.

Tyres

Pirelli supplies the medium compound as the prime tyre and the soft compound as the option — a step softer than the previous year’s hard and medium selection.

Practice

Hamilton leads Rosberg in both Friday sessions, with Rosberg only 0.021 seconds behind in the second. Vettel finishes third in both, about seven-tenths of a second off the pace in the afternoon. Jolyon Palmer replaces Grosjean in the first session, finishing half a second slower than Maldonado. A red flag is brought out when Sainz spins into the gravel at the Parabolica.

Ferrari reduce the gap to Mercedes in the afternoon, with Pérez and Hülkenberg’s Force India cars splitting the two Ferraris. Verstappen spins into the gravel at the Ascari chicane. Ricciardo suffers a hydraulic issue on his first run; Button is called back to the pits after only three laps.

Hamilton is again fastest in the third session, with Vettel second at 0.264 seconds. The session starts on a slightly damp track after overnight rain. Ricciardo’s newly fitted power unit fails during the session; Kvyat spends most of his time in the garage.

Max Verstappen receives a drive-through penalty to be served within the first three laps of the race for an unsafe pit release during qualifying.