George Russell Tops Monza Final Practice in 1:22.219 as Hamilton, Verstappen Chase
Updated
Updated · Formula 1 · Sep 5
George Russell Tops Monza Final Practice in 1:22.219 as Hamilton, Verstappen Chase
3 articles · Updated · Formula 1 · Sep 5
Summary
1:22.219 put George Russell fastest in Italian Grand Prix final practice, 0.226 seconds ahead of Lewis Hamilton, with Max Verstappen another 0.124 back in third.
Fresh soft-tyre runs in the final 15 minutes reshuffled the order after Kimi Antonelli had led mid-session; the Mercedes rookie finished fourth despite a back-of-grid engine penalty.
Monza’s busy track produced several incidents: Liam Lawson spun at the first chicane, Oscar Piastri locked up, and Hamilton and Verstappen had a tense side-by-side moment that stewards noted but did not investigate.
Williams also had a messy hour, with Alex Albon briefly sidelined by a steering-wheel issue before returning; he and Carlos Sainz will be investigated for an alleged yellow-flag infringement and both already face engine-related back-of-grid starts.
Qualifying at 1600 local time now follows a session that reinforced Mercedes’ pace after Russell had also led Friday’s second practice.