Monza welcomes Sainz with open arms and tightens (in principle) the noose around Alonso's neck.

Silverstone and Monza serve as the two great cathedrals of motorsports. Due to their high speed, of course, and as two opposing ways of expressing a passion for competition. The former with phlegmatic Anglo-Saxon equanimity. The latter, pure, overflowing passion with a single-minded focus on one team. It's the latter's turn at the Italian Grand Prix.

On Thursday, Lewis Hamilton was still reeling from the previous day's reception from the fans in Milan. "Yesterday was a unique experience. I had to pinch myself when I walked into the factory and saw the Ferrari logo... Being in Milan, in the heart of the city, and seeing the passion of the fans ... It was very intense. I'll try to use that energy." He'll need it this weekend.

Based on the profiles of their respective cars, Monza awaits Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz with open arms for the latter, and perhaps a noose around the neck for the Asturian. It remains to be seen how far they will push, and if previous editions and the precedent at Spa are any indication, it doesn't bode well for them.

Alonso: A Crocodile Trap

The Aston Martin driver arrives with the fresh disappointment of Zandvoort , a track favorable to the AMR25, the Spaniard acknowledged at the official press conference. He didn't fully capitalize on that opportunity. On the contrary, Monza is expected to be a crocodile trap, which he'll try not to fall into. One can only recall the two previous editions or the last row of the grid at Spa, a paradise for aerodynamic efficiency.

“We're a little more concerned about Monza. The last efficiency circuit was Spa, and we weren't particularly fast. We'll see how we approach the weekend with the car setup and if we can improve on what we did at Spa,” explained the Asturian, offering some hope thanks to the aerodynamic developments of recent months. “On paper, Monza isn't the same track.”

“At the beginning, we didn't have a car that could be in the top ten on Sundays, but now it seems we can fight in that midfield and score points regularly. In the last nine races, I think I've been in Q3 seven times, which shows that it's a very different car aerodynamically, although it hasn't changed that much mechanically,” he explained about the Aston Martin's evolution . “The setup is something we work on from one weekend to the next, but aerodynamically, the car is more stable, easier to drive, and we're getting better laps.”

Although Monza isn't like that pair of " good places (until the end of the year), similar to Budapest or Zandvoort, perhaps Singapore or Brazil, but it's true that we've encountered positive and sometimes negative surprises, so we're not pinning our hopes on every race. We want to maximize every weekend, like here in Monza, and we'll see where we are in Abu Dhabi and how many points we have." Just in case, it's better to prepare for... the worst.

The Madrid native also arrives at Monza with a double toad inside him: the penalty at Zandvoort and his infamous run of luck. "It's starting to get tiring for my season, and mentally, too, accepting so many weekends where I'm going fast, with good qualifying, good race pace, it seems like I'm going to get a good result, and then something happens." Monza is familiar territory for the Madrid native, who has always treated him well in the past, although Williams is opening a new chapter in his career.

“It's a track I love coming to. It's one of the best circuits in the world, and having all the fans here definitely makes it more fun and enjoyable. There's less downforce, so I love the feeling of the car being looser; I feel comfortable. It's been a good track for the Williams in the past, and I hope we can get a good result.”

Personally, I like it, but the team also likes it. “There are opportunities for Williams, because Zandvoort, Monza, and Baku are a good opportunity for the team,” explained Sainz, who explained the reasons. “Our car works well on straights, braking, and ninety-degree corners. We don't like long corners and combinations of entry and exit. We have that balance limitation in low-speed corners, although we should be doing better.” With the exception of “the Parabolica and Lesmo corners, we will lose out to our competitors, but we hope to make up for it in the short Turns 1, 2, 3, and 4 and on the straights.”

Moving beyond the specific scope of the Grand Prix, Alonso was asked about his experience at Monza throughout his various stages in Formula 1. No one better to explain and summarize the evolution of single-seaters and driving on this track. “It's definitely changed a lot. I've driven in different configurations, very different from the current one. Just as the cars have changed, Monza is different; the load makes it safer. When I started, I remember driving with almost no rear wing, and it felt like the car was floating on the straights, like we had no control. Now I wouldn't say it's easy, but at least we feel like we controlled the car throughout the lap,” explained the Asturian.

Of course, he also alluded to the safety changes that are valued at a track that is so dangerous due to its high speeds and unique aerodynamic configuration. “We also have various safety features, which makes it much safer. In the past, you felt the danger, the speed, and the adrenaline, but now it's a little different. We have the halo, the Hans, many things that I didn't have the first time I came here. And everyone has tested before coming to Monza ; in the 2000s, we didn't have these kinds of privileges.”

"They were wrong"

For his part, Sainz arrived at Monza still bummed out by the penalty at Zandvoort. “They had a very busy Sunday due to the number of incidents during the race, but I firmly believe the same as when the race ended. Now I'm taking a calmer view: the penalty was unacceptable,” he declared. “It's complicated, especially after the race. I try to control my emotions as best I can, but there are times when it's difficult to do so, because it's hard to understand certain things.”

Sainz did speak with the stewards. “There was a misunderstanding at the corralito. I thought I wouldn't be able to go, but I did, and I sat down with them for a few minutes to analyze the incident,” he explained in the official press conference. “It became clear to me when they had all the evidence, and where they should have looked to make the right decision. They realized it wasn't the best decision.”

Sainz insisted that contact had occurred because Lawson lost his car, but the stewards hadn't taken this into account. "When you look at the onboard cameras and go into the details of what happened, you can clearly see why he should never have been penalized." When the matter was reviewed with the driver, the stewards acknowledged Sainz's error.

“Now we're trying to see how we can gather enough evidence to change the outcome of the penalty,” especially the license points. And the Spaniard presented an amendment to the current structure that oversees on-track incidents. “ I will always support the idea that we need to have permanent marshals. The rules are complicated enough, and having different people learning and applying them isn't the same. If they were permanent, we would have consistency.”

He also questioned Hamilton 's penalty, which was crucial for the Briton at Monza. "They took too long (to decide), and he's taking the penalty for Monza, where he didn't do anything wrong, and he's paying the price for what he did back then... This shows how difficult the process is. There's always room for improvement. It has to be a collaborative effort between drivers, the GPDA (the association that brings them together), and the FIA. Zandvoort made it clear to us why we're not ready to perform in a sport as complicated as this."