Another appointment in the archive for this F1 season, with Max Verstappen winning the Dutch GP. The next one, however, is not just any race. In fact, the top category of Motorsport is moving to Monza, in the Temple of Speed, and the Ferrari seeks redemption.
The centenary history of the route
The national autodrome of Monza is a permanent circuit built in the town of the same name. And the third oldest route in the world, behind only that of Brooklands, in England, and that of Indianapolis, in the United States of America. Its inauguration, in fact, dates back to 1922: on May 15th the works began and, in 110 days, the racetrack was built. To date, it presents almost 119 thousand seats.
Long 5793 meters, Presents 11 curves e two DRS zones, one on the main straight, the other between Lesmo 2 and the chicane dedicated to Alberto Ascari. It's the circuit with the highest average speed per lap. Before 1991, this record was held by the route of Silverstone, but after the changes that occurred that year, the record passed into the hands of the Brianza track. From that moment, the racetrack was nicknamed as Temple of Speed, also thanks to his Top Speeds on the main straight.

The absolute track record belongs to Lewis Hamilton, time set in qualifying 2020, when the stopwatch stopped at 1'18 "887. The Briton also set the highest average speed ever recorded in F1: 264,362 km/h. The official track record was set by Rubens Barrichello in the race of 2004, when his F2004 he made time stop 1'21 "046.
Very weak wings, almost non-existent: this is the key to Monza
Monza, as well as being a special track due to its longevity in Formula 1 (from 1950 to today the race has always been on the calendar), has a characteristic that makes it different from any other track. The setup that is adopted on this circuit is one of a kind. The hind wings, to minimize the drag and to reach increasingly higher speeds on straights, they are practically inexistent. In fact, an a configuration is adopted very low load. This also reduces the effect of DRS which, having more and more wings narrow, it will have an opening lower and lower than normal efficiency. This, also combined with a high-performance engine, are the key to go well on the Lombard track.
Another fundamental aspect will also be wear and tear. Everything, however, will depend on temperature which will be recorded during the Italian weekend, which is expected to be hot enough. It will therefore be very common to see some graining.
Also because of strong breaks along the entire route combined with the high temperatures, the components that will suffer the most will certainly be the brakes. Let us remember, for example, the withdrawal of Sebastian Vettel due to a problem with the braking system. Also, we'll see large openings on their bellies to be able to cool down the entire engine block at its best.
Verstappen goes for history, Ferrari for pride
It's time for predictions, and who else? Max Verstappen he is the favorite for this race. 9 wins in a row for the Dutch lion, who in his homeland a Zandvoort equaled his own record Hag. Why match it when you can even get over it. With her talents and with one RB19 that seems designed to your measure, SuperMax goes to write its name into the record books once again. Watch out, however, for the mosquito Ferrari. Precisely in Holland, the Red car proved to be the fastest in terms of Top Speed, accomplice the Superfast mounted on SF-23 which, at full capacity, it is at the level of Red Bull. And who knows what with the pride you can't do well at home aspire to something more important.
ARTICLE BY FRANCESCO ORLANDO