After qualifying on the front row just 0.034s behind Oscar Piastri – the sixth time this season pole position was decided by less than a tenth of a second – the reigning world champion fended off a fast starting George Russell to pull off a sensational move around the outside of Piastri through turns one and two. A virtual and full safety car did little to hinder Verstappen’s progress, as he managed the restarts to come home 6.1 seconds clear of the field.
With Pirelli bringing the C4, C5, and C6 compounds to Imola (the softest in their range), tire wear and strategy were major talking points. After losing the lead to Verstappen, McLaren attempted an undercut by pitting Piastri on lap 14. However, with tire management less of an issue for Red Bull, Verstappen was able to go long on his set of mediums and maintain a 32-second lead over Piastri, until a mechanical failure for Esteban Ocon brought out the virtual safety car on lap 29. Having done 17 laps on his hard tires, many of which were spent in traffic, Piastri was forced to pit for a second time. A decision that allowed Verstappen to retain the lead and Lando Norris to successfully overcut his teammate. Piastri emerged in fourth behind the Williams of Alexander Albon. Having qualified a lowly 13th, Kimi Antonelli’s first-ever home race proved to be one he would rather forget. After being caught and passed by Lewis Hamilton on lap 34, the local hero was forced to pull over with a throttle issue on lap 44. The resulting safety car proved beneficial for Norris who was able to fit a new set of hards, unlike his teammate who had run out of fresh tires. A brief skirmish with Albon at the pitlane exit left Norris free to chase after his teammate, the Briti completing the pass on lap 58.
This year’s running of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was one to forget for Mercedes. In addition to Antonelli’s DNF, Russell was hindered by poor tire wear. After qualifying P3, Russell found himself under attack from Norris as early as lap 10. The Mercedes’ driver’s staunch defense was thwarted a lap later. Russell was unable to make any kind of impact on the leading trio or even fend off the likes of Albon and the Ferraris, later describing the day as “disastrous” having struggled for pace and ended up P7.
After a poor showing in qualifying in which both cars failed to make Q3, Ferrari’s race pace was some consolation. Lewis Hamilton’s decision to start on the hard tyres paid dividends as the seven-time world champion benefitted from the VSC to pit for mediums on lap 30, before passing Isack Hadjar for fifth six laps later. Charles Leclerc made solid progress on the mediums before switching to hards for the remainder of the race. Having gotten past Albon for P4 by the final safety car restart, Leclerc found himself under stern pressure from the Williams. The ensuing scrap reached a crescendo on lap 60 when having pulled to the outside of turn one in an attempt to get past the Ferrari, Albon was forced onto the gravel allowing Hamilton to come through for fifth. The Ferraris swapped places a lap later following which Leclerc waved Albon through in order to avoid a penalty.
Elsewhere, Aston Martin’s impressive showing in qualifying amounted to very little. Excessive tire wear relegated Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso to 15th and 11th respectively, the two-time world champion doing little to hide his frustration over team radio. After crashing out in Q1, Yuki Tsunoda was able to recover to tenth ahead of Nico Hulkenberg whose solid pace saw him run in the points until the final safety car restart. In his first race for Alpine in place of Jack Doohan, Franco Colapinto was the subject of much paddock scrutiny particularly after his crash in Q2. On Sunday, the new signing ran a trouble-free race, allowing teammate Pierre Gasly through on the orders of the team. The Frenchman’s tenth place start falling by the wait side after an off-road excursion while battling with Leclerc on lap 3.
