05/09/2025
NEWS STORY
The Italian Grand Prix weekend got underway on Friday at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza in beautiful September sunshine.
The team opted to run all three compounds across the day, with the C4 Medium and C5 Soft deployed in FP1 and the C3 Hard and the Soft once again in use in FP2.
The opening session saw a brief red flag for gravel on track but with both drivers completing their programme; George came to a halt on track in the final minute caused by an hydraulic issue that was rectified ahead of FP2.
In the second hour of Friday practice, both drivers left the garage on the white-walled Hard tyre. Kimi's session unfortunately came to a premature conclusion as he ended beached in the gravel at Turn 7 on his second push lap.
Once the session resumed, George completed Soft tyre work before long running on the Hard compound. In a field that looks tight and competitive heading into the weekend, he ended P10 on the timesheets after struggling to optimise his run on the Soft compound but less than 0.4s down on P1.
George Russell: It was a tricky day here in Monza. We come to what is a low downforce circuit fresh from running at Zandvoort where we are running higher downforce. The car therefore feels quite different and not quite as planted as it did the week before, particularly at the rear. Whilst it therefore didn't feel spectacular today, the pace wasn't too bad. The field is tight; I finished P10 in FP2 but still only just under four tenths shy of P1.
We will look to make some improvements overnight as I suspect that it will prove to be just as competitive over the rest of the weekend. I struggled for a little bit of confidence and had a few moments, particularly at Turn 7 like Kimi. There's definitely lap time to be found therefore and if we can unlock that, then we can be confident of having a good weekend.
Kimi Antonelli: I pushed a little bit too hard on my second lap in FP2 for the grip conditions and that put me in the gravel. I kept the car running but was unfortunately beached. It was a shame as I'd had a positive FP1 and my first lap on the Hard tyre was strong. It is a setback, but my confidence is still high. I felt confident in the car, and we were moving in the right direction with the set-up. We will adjust our FP3 programme a little to compensate for the lost track time, but we can still look forward to the weekend.
It certainly looks very close out there. Just under four tenths covered the top 10 in FP2 so small improvements will make a big difference. I am excited to get back out there tomorrow and try to secure a good starting position that sets us up well for Sunday. Let's see what we can do.
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director: It has been a tricky first day on track here in Monza. George wasn't particularly happy with the balance of the car throughout and Kimi unfortunately lost track time with an off in FP2. George finished the day in P10; it's clear that we need to find a couple of tenths but that is often the case on a Friday. The balance wasn't where he needed it, so we know where to look for improvements.
Kimi had a solid FP1 session and FP2 started well but ended all too soon when he got stuck in the gravel after a minor off. Despite the set-back, he's happy with the car and had shown good pace in the first session. He's likely to have a busy final practice recovering a bit of ground but there's no reason he shouldn't still be aiming for a good result tomorrow.
Given how close the field looks, small improvements overnight may have a big impact over the rest of the weekend. We will work diligently with our team-mates both trackside and back at Brackley and Brixworth to get the most out of the car. It's difficult to overtake here so we'll be doing everything we can to have a strong qualifying and secure good starting positions for the grid on Sunday.