2015 Formula 1 Gran Premio d`Italia

Italian Grand Prix – Monza, 6 September 2015

Posted: 06.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Maurizio Arrivabene: “This time I see the glass half full. Sebastian’s race to second place was unbelievable. His contribution to the team so far has been outstanding. As for Kimi, he had a great qualifying yesterday, then maybe he messed up a bit at the start of the race. But afterwards he was able to pass a lot of cars on the track with a fantastic race. Ideally, we would have hoped for two good starts, but we’re happy anyway with this weekend. We came here investing a few tokens on our Power Unit and we’re satisfied with our gain, also in terms of reliability. In the forthcoming races, the gap to our main competitors will depend much on the kind of track. We will keep on working with humility and determination to the end of the season, trying to jump on every opportunity”.

Kimi Raikkonen: “I don’t know exactly what happened at the start. As far as I know I did everything correctly, but the car went into the antistall and did not move at all. I still don’t have the right explanation about what happened, but it’s a really bad thing that cost us a lot today. If you start from second place and after a few seconds you’re in last position it’s not easy to see the positive side of the race: we wasted a big opportunity to fight at the front. The car has been working well all weekend and also in the race the behavior was good. We made the best out of it and in the end I managed to come up fifth. Obviously I’m a bit disappointed, as we were hoping for a better result in our home race in front of all our fans, but if we think that after the first hundred metres we were last it was still a good result. Overall we had a pretty good speed all weekend so in a way we have to be happy for what we have done because here we were expecting more difficulties. Today I was positively surprised that we could get through some cars that are very fast on the straights, this shows that we are doing the right things, pushing the car in the right direction and improving in all areas”.

Sebastian Vettel: “It’s an incredible day, it’s the best second place I ever had in Formula One. Thanks to all the tifosi for giving me those emotions today on the podium: it’s fantastic to see so many fans, feel the support we get as a team. It just makes our lives so much more worth living when you see all the fans coming underneath the podium. In terms of emotions it’s more than a victory. It’s nearly a perfect day: I’m saying nearly because I don’t know what happened to Kimi at the start. It’s a shame because otherwise I believe we could have both cars on the podium today. The speed was there, unfortunately not enough to win, but we’ve tried everything. Monza is known to be a power track and we all know how dominant Mercedes was here last year. I believe the engine guys have done a great job. There are for sure things that we need to improve: we’ll do step by step. Tyres were ok for the whole weekend.”

Italian Grand Prix – A podium in Monza

Posted: 06.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Sebastian second, Kimi fifth

Monza, 6 September –Scuderia Ferrari’s home race was very exciting right from the start. Kimi Raikkonen had a difficult getaway and dropped down to the back, after which he fought his way up the order to fifth place at the flag. Sebastian Vettel moved into second at the start and managed to stay there right to the finish, behind the winner, Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes. Third was Felipe Massa for Williams.

Italian Grand Prix – Monza, 5 September 2015

Posted: 05.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Kimi Raikkonen: “It was the best qualifying of the year, I’m happy for all the team and the people who support us. This was the perfect time for us: obviously we’d like to get such a good result at every race, but if I have to choose one it’s here. Today was a good day, it gives us a good chance for the race, but this doesn’t mean that tomorrow we can beat everybody. We need to do a good job. I’m a bit surprised because we knew our weaknesses and the layout of this track, but everything worked well and we were closer to Mercedes than we what we expected. It’s impossible to say what’s going to happen tomorrow, obviously our aim is to make a good start then go safely into the first corner, do the maximum and hopefully we’ll be able to challenge. We’ll try to do our best and see how it ends up.”

Sebastian Vettel: “I’m very happy, not entirely with my lap as I made a bit of mistake in Lesmo 1, but for the fantastic result it is for the team. It puts us in a great position for tomorrow: it’s a bit of a surprise to be so close to Mercedes today, but we have to wait and see tomorrow. We know that they will be very strong in the race and they will be the ones to beat if we want to win, but maybe with all the power from the tifosi we can have a surprise. This time is very different for me compared to the previous years I’ve been here: when you’re driving you can see people clapping and cheering, pushing and supporting you and it’s fantastic. Inside and outside the track there are so many fans: for us this is the most special race of the calendar.”

Italian Grand Prix – Ferrari back on the front row

Posted: 05.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Kimi second, Sebastian third

Monza, 5 September –Qualifying for Scuderia Ferrari’s home race, the Italian Grand Prix took place in sunny conditions after this morning’s rain, so that weather conditions more or less replicated what’s expected for tomorrow. Kimi Raikkonen will start from second on the grid with a time of 1.23.631, while Ferrari team-mate Sebastian Vettel will start from third in 1.23.685 in front of the big crowd here in Monza. Lewis Hamilton took pole for Mercedes in 1.23.397.

Italian Grand Prix – Weather can’t stop the work

Posted: 05.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Second and seventh fastest for Ferrari in third free practice

Monza, 5 September – Rain fell overnight and up to the morning at the Monza circuit, but it didn’t get in the way of work in the recently concluded third free practice session for the Italian Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel was second fastest for Ferrari with a 1.24.808, splitting the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton (1.24.544) and Nico Rosberg (1.24.843.) In the other SF15-T, Kimi Raikkonen was seventh in 1.25.244. After setting out on the Medium tyres on a still damp track, the two Ferrari men, who were evaluating different set-ups, ended the session on the soft compound, once the sun appeared and the track gradually dried out.

Italian Grand Prix – Monza, 4 September 2015

Posted: 04.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Kimi Raikkonen: “It was a very normal Friday, the sessions were running smoothly and we had no issues. I was not very happy with my driving, we have to fix a couple of things and then, like in any other race, we’ll have some work to do to try to improve and find the right set up for tomorrow and Sunday. I did not have the time to see what the others were doing today, we did our own things and hopefully we can have a good weekend in front of all our tifosi.”

Sebastian Vettel: “It was a solid day for us, we had no issues with the car and we’ve got quite a lot of running which is always positive. The qualifying here will be very important: overtaking is possible with so long straights and this always helps, but still the first corner is very tight and the higher up you are the easiest it is. The first two cars are quite far away unfortunately, maybe we can get a bit closer tomorrow and we’ll see what happens in the race. The focus now is on the car and on how to find a few tenths for tomorrow as we’re not entirely happy. Seeing all the flags around on Friday was a good warm up. Expectations are high, but all we can promise to our fans is that we’ll give it everything we have.”

Italian Grand Prix – Mounting expectations

Posted: 04.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Good race simulation pace

Monza, 4 September –In the second free practice session for the Italian Grand Prix the SF15-Ts of Sebastian Vettel (1:25.038) and Kimi Raikkonen (1:25.380) set the third and sixth fastest times respectively. The team focused on long runs and tyre testing, in preparation for qualifying and the race. Fastest was Lewis Hamilton (1.24.279) followed by his Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg (1.24.300.)

Italian Grand Prix – Routine work on a special circuit

Posted: 22.08.2015
Source: Ferrari

Looking for the best set-up on the SF15-T in Monza

Monza, 4 September – The first free practice session just ended at the Monza circuit marks the official start of the Italian Grand Prix weekend, the twelfth round of the season and the 79th to be held at this track. Quickest were the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton (1.24.670) and Nico Rosberg (1.25.133), ahead of the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel (1.26.258). In the other SF15-T, Kimi Raikkonen was sixth with a 1.26.783. Both Ferrari drivers spent the session working through a busy programme of aero measurements, brake system checks and set-up work, as well as trying a few practice starts. They each used two sets of the Medium tyre and will be back on track for the usual afternoon session at 2pm.

Italian Grand Prix – Thousands in Monza for a Meet and Greet

Posted: 03.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

The Scuderia meets its fans at the Villa Reale

Monza, 3 September – Thousands of people with banners, chanting with passion. Not even pounding rain could dampen the enthusiasm for the Meet and Greet held at Monza’s Villa Reale. It was a simple idea, to bring the Scuderia to its public, outside the circuit and it was enthusiastically undertaken by everyone, including the drivers. There was a live broadcast from Sky TV after which Sebastian, Kimi, Esteban and Marc went for a spot of crowd surfing. Jumping off the stage, they spent a long time with the fans, shaking hands and signing autographs. An hour earlier, Maurizio Arrivabene had kicked off the show before signing off with the words, “we have you here” as he held his hand to his heart. The Meet and Greet was not the “usual” sort of meeting and it gave the very much “ferrarista” crowd the opportunity to feel it was right there, close up with the F1 protagonists. Close up in every sense, because the questions put by the audience were wide ranging, from favourite foods (pizza for Kimi, carbonara for Seb) to their favourite tracks, before ending with the topic of …partners. The evening took place in a wonderful setting, between the recently restored Villa and the Park. It’s definitely something worth doing again.

Italian Grand Prix – “Our best for the fans”

Posted: 03.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Kimi delighted to be at Monza again

It’s difficult to say how things will go here, this is the first real low downforce circuit and we have to wait until tomorrow practice to see roughly where we are. It would be nice to have a good weekend, in our home race, in front of our fans. For me none of the past races here in Monza have been ideal, my aim is always to win. Quite often I have had some good speed but something always happened and I couldn’t be on the top. It’s always nice to come to Monza, it has a lot of history and it would be a shame not to come back to this place. We’ll try our best to offer a good result to the fans.

Italian GP – “The podium here is amazing”

Posted: 03.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Sebastian: “Driving a Ferrari is a privilege”

It’s definitely a special week end coming up and very much looking forward to it. I had some very nice moments here, the podium is simply amazing with people coming from the grandstands and grass. It’s normally full of fans wearing red clothes and waving red flags: in the past I didn’t mind, but now it’s obviously different. It’s a privilege to drive this car and even if we have strong competitors, we’ll do our best to try to make our fans happy. There have been a lot of things said after Spa about the tires: the most important is that a lot of efforts have been put in place from Pirelli side and we’re all looking at how to improve together.

Monza Grand Prix – Heavy braking

Posted: 02.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Gutierrez: “A special feeling”

Maranello, 2 September –For Esteban Gutiérrez, Scuderia Ferrari’s third driver, the coming weekend’s Italian Grand Prix will be his first with this team. “You breathe in a unique atmosphere,” the Mexican driver told ferrari.com. “Before one’s home race there are special feelings when one is part of the Ferrari family. We are keen to put on a good show in front of our fans, who always support us and I always remember seeing all those flags flying in the wind inside the park. “The Monza track is very heavy on the brakes, because you arrive in the braking areas at high speed and it’s important to manage to adequately cool the discs, so they can work efficiently at the next braking point. The aerodynamic set-up for Monza is a low downforce one, but you have to make sure that doesn’t compromise traction coming out of the chicanes. If it rains, the race becomes very tough, because of the need to hit your braking points at speed. As usual, strategy will play an important role during the race and we will have to be ready for whatever scenario might arise”.

Come and meet Seb, Kimi and Maurizio

Posted: 01.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Maranello 2nd September – At this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix, for the first time ever, Scuderia Ferrari will go outside the circuit to join its fans. Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen along with Team Principal Maurizio Arrivabene will meet all the fans who wish to take part, tomorrow 3rd September starting at 18.30 in the Park of the Villa Reale di Monza. Entry to this event is free and you can prepare your questions for Seb, Kimi and Maurizio sending them as of now on Twitter with the hashtag #SFMeets. We look forward to meeting you!

Italian Grand Prix – An exciting weekend

Posted: 01.09.2015
Source: Ferrari

Sebastian: I can’t wait to meet the tifosi

Maranello, 1 September –This weekend’s Italian Grand Prix will be Sebastian Vettel’s first appearance as a Scuderia Ferrari driver at the team’s home race. “Naturally, I’ve got a whole load of great memories and feelings linked to Monza and I always like coming here,” the German driver told ferrari.com. “And being here with Ferrari makes it even more special. It’s not a demanding track physically, but that doesn’t mean it’s simple: you have to look after the brake system, because the long straights mean you reach the braking areas at high speed. The track characteristics require a low aerodynamic downforce set-up and this makes the car harder to drive. I am curious to see what it will be like driving at this track, partly because this year’s power unit is more powerful and also because I’m looking forward to meeting all our fans: I can’t wait.”