Italian GP qualifying bursts into life: Russell sets early marker as Alpine and Racing Bulls tumble out
Monza doesn’t do gentle warm-ups. It snaps straight to red. The opening act of qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix was a full-throttle blur, George Russell laying down a 1:19.414 to top Q1, while both Alpine and Racing Bulls found the trapdoor.
In a session where the slipstream lottery and razor-thin margins turned every lap into a photo finish, times tumbled hard and fast. At one stage, not a single driver looked safe. Fernando Alonso lit up the boards to third midway through, a reminder that experience still counts at the Temple of Speed, before the order reshuffled again in the final flurry.
By the flag, Russell’s Mercedes sat on top. Max Verstappen was a whisker behind at +0.041, Lando Norris third at +0.103 as McLaren played it steady with both cars through. Title protagonists ticked their boxes, but the picture wasn’t spotless: Oscar Piastri only sneaked through in tenth, leaving the Australian with work to do as the track ramped up.
The story, though, was at the other end. Both Racing Bulls were out — Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson eliminated in 16th and 20th — a sobering reset after the Faenza camp’s high in Zandvoort. Alpine shared the pain, Franco Colapinto and Pierre Gasly both exiting in Q1 after missing the cut by more than half a tenth in a session where that may as well be a minute.
Notable survivors? Plenty. Yuki Tsunoda delivered a sharp lap for Red Bull to go fourth, nestling behind the headline trio. Carlos Sainz kept Williams right in the mix in fifth, a tidy effort amid a chaotic pack fight. Alonso’s sixth for Aston Martin looked punchy; so did the rookies in the midfield knife fight — Gabriel Bortoleto and Oliver Bearman were level on the stopwatch in seventh and eighth, both just +0.274 off Russell. That’s an eye-opener for Sauber and Haas respectively.
Charles Leclerc banked ninth for Ferrari on home soil, while teammate Lewis Hamilton — who had been eighth before the final runs — slipped to 12th as others found a tow and a touch more grip when it mattered. Kimi Antonelli, carrying the weight of home expectation in a Mercedes, was a composed 11th.
Q1 set the tone: frantic, unforgiving, Monza at its most Monza. With the field compressed and the tow games in full swing, there was no hiding. One mistimed out-lap or a baulked sector, and you were in the weeds. Alpine and Racing Bulls learned that the hard way; Haas, Sauber and Williams cashed in.
Q1 classification (selected):
– 1. George Russell, Mercedes – 1:19.414
– 2. Max Verstappen, Red Bull +0.041
– 3. Lando Norris, McLaren +0.103
– 4. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull +0.205
– 5. Carlos Sainz, Williams +0.230
– 6. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin +0.244
– 7. Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber +0.274
– 8. Oliver Bearman, Haas +0.274
– 9. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari +0.275
– 10. Oscar Piastri, McLaren +0.297
– 11. Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes +0.333
– 12. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari +0.351
– 13. Nico HĂĽlkenberg, Sauber +0.363
– 14. Esteban Ocon, Haas +0.402
– 15. Alex Albon, Williams +0.423
Eliminated:
– 16. Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls +0.503
– 17. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin +0.534
– 18. Franco Colapinto, Alpine +0.578
– 19. Pierre Gasly, Alpine +0.689
– 20. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls +0.865
A few threads to watch as qualifying deepens: Mercedes look trimmed out and confident, Russell in particular finding free air where few others could. Red Bull aren’t far off — Verstappen’s delta tells its own story — while McLaren appear to be managing the risk, banking laps rather than overplaying the toe. Ferrari’s home hopes are alive but edgy; Leclerc looks the steadier of the two so far, Hamilton needing a cleaner launch window when the track is at its best.
Monza’s classic paradox remains. The tow is everything, until it ruins you. Teams will keep juggling track position, battery deployment and out-lap spacing in the hope of aligning a perfect slipstream without traffic. If Q1 taught us anything, it’s that there’s no margin for error and not much margin at all.
The pole fight will be decided by hundredths — and by who blinks first in the queue.
