The F1x

• The Out Lap

  • Talking Points

  • All about Monza

• News From the Week

  • Logan out at Williams

  • Who is Franco Colapinto?

The Out Lap

Talking Points

Ferrari are repping some special black race shirts this weekend inspired by carbon fibre.

Lewis Hamilton will likely receive more cheers than usual from the Tifosi this year due to his upcoming switch. He mentioned to the media that he has already been asked to sign some Ferrari caps!

With a couple of wins under his belt and the expectation to continue pushing for victories, what will Lando's mindset be? It will be interesting to see how he presents himself in the media and within the team now that he has an outside chance of catching Verstappen in the drivers' championship.

Will Red Bull close the gap to McLaren? Surely the gap can't be more than 22 seconds again…

All About Monza

5.793km / 53 laps / race lap record 1:21.046 (Rubens Barrichello 2004)

Also known as “The Temple of Speed,” the Autodromo Nazionale Monza was founded in 1922, with the city of Monza located just north of Milan.

To give a sense of the speed achieved at Monza, in 2020 Lewis Hamilton set a lap time of 1:18.887 during qualifying, with an average speed of 264.36 km/h.

Monza is one of four current tracks on the F1 circuit that has been on the calendar since the inaugural F1 season in 1950.

Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher share the record for the most wins at Monza, with five each.

News From the Week

Logan Sargeant OUT at Williams for the remainder of the season. While that was the rumour going around and it is not a shock to have it come true, what might be a surprise to many of us if who is taking the WIlliams seat for the remained of the 2024 season… Franco Colapinto will be stepping in to replace Sargeant beginning this weekend in Monza.

While this may seem like a weird choice from Williams, it might actually be the best for them. Bringing in a driver such as Mick Schumacher or Liam Lawson poses some risk to Alex Albon’s reputation within the team. If Carlos outshines him next year, people might start comparing him to the short stint Colapinto will have. This is a safe choice with a small amount of downside: if he performs similarly to Logan, then nothing changes; if he performs well, they might move up a spot in the drivers' championship. He likely won’t make a huge impact, which could add some buzz to the garage next year if Sainz or Albon have a mediocre season.

James Vowles had this to say:

"We have just brought a large upgrade to the car and need to maximise every points-scoring opportunity in a remarkably tight midfield battle.”

"We also believe in investing in our young drivers in the Williams Racing Driver Academy, and Franco is getting a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate what he is capable of across the final nine rounds of the season.”

Who is Franco Colapinto?

• First Argentinian driver in F1 in 23 years

• He is 21 years old

• Is a part of the Williams Driver Academy

• He made is F1 FP1 debut for Williams at the 2024 British GP

• He is a F2 sprint race winner (Imola 2024), but not a F2 feature race winner.

• Currently he was 6th in the F2 Championship