2014 Italian Grand Prix F1: Top 10 Reader Results!

The thirteenth Grand Prix of the season, in Monza, was won by Lewis Hamilton ahead of Nico Rosberg and Felipe Massa. The rest of the top 10 included, in order, Valtteri Bottas, Daniel Ricciardo, Sebastian Vettel, Sergio Pérez, Jenson Button, Kimi Räikkönen, and Kevin Magnussen. Let’s see if the 129 voters followed the order of the race…

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) – 25 pts

On pole, the Briton faltered at the start, seemingly a victim of a lack of torque. In the race, however, his performance was almost perfect: he relatively easily got past Magnussen and then Massa before setting off in pursuit of Rosberg, on whom he was closing in (by 0.7 seconds) before his mistake to claim a victory and a breath of fresh air.

2. Felipe Massa (Williams) – 18pts

For the Brazilian, this return to the podium paradoxically meant a calm and somewhat uneventful race: after overtaking McLaren No. 20 and being – quite nicely – overtaken by Hamilton, the Williams driver sailed in between, far behind the Mercedes, but well ahead of the battle for 4th place.

3. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) – 15 pts

With bold overtakes (on Vettel or Räikkönen, notably) and a favorable strategy allowing him to be very fast at the end of the race, the Australian was one of the highlights of the Grand Prix and secured another top 5 finish.

4. Valtteri Bottas (Williams) – 12 pts

The other poor starter in this race (3rd on the grid, 11th on the first lap) also put on a show. And while his pit stop forced him to overtake the drivers again, over whom he had gained an advantage earlier in the race, it offered the spectators a knife-edge duel with Magnussen, in particular.

5. Nico Rosberg (Mercedes) – 10 pts

In the lead at the first corner and having shaken off his teammate, the German was thought to be on a promising path towards a possible and perhaps crucial victory. That was not the case: overall slower than Hamilton, he also made two mistakes that proved costly. Even though he only lost 7 points, this race revealed an unknown weakness in him.

6. Sergio Pérez (Force India) – 8 points

The Indian team seemed the least comfortable among the competitors equipped with a Mercedes engine. Yet, the Mexican masterfully managed his race by staying the entire GP in the outsider group. This race will be remembered for the wheel-to-wheel duel with Button but also the fact that he very convincingly beat Hülkenberg once again.

7. Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) – 6 pts

Faster than his teammate overall, the German mainly suffered from the presumptuous strategy that had him change tires as early as the 18th lap, while his teammate, who overtook him at the end of the race, stopped 7 laps later. Despite everything, he was aggressive and couldn’t have done better with his equipment.

8. Jenson Button (McLaren) – 4 pts

Despite a good qualification, the Briton did not deliver his best race, easily outpaced on the track by his teammate and by Pérez, who gave him an impossible run for his money.

9. Kevin Magnussen (McLaren) – 2 pts

Author of a good start allowing him to miraculously point to the 2nd place for a few laps, the Dane could not resist cars much faster than his McLaren. However, during the rest of the race, his resistance worked wonders. But, judged too aggressive against Bottas, it ultimately cost him points – as in Spa – although this time, he managed to save one point in extremis.

10. Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso) – 1 pt

Penalized by 10 places on the grid, the Russian’s task looked complicated during the race. But, ultimately, he exceeded expectations by making his way through the pack and taking advantage of a conservative strategy (the first 30 laps on hard tires) to get back to the point-scoring positions. A brake issue at the start of the last lap prevented him from aiming higher, but it’s another blow to Vergne, who started 13th.

2014 rankings from the readers (after 13 GPs)