Hamilton & Button secure front row lock out for Italian Grand Prix

Lewis Hamilton has stormed to his fourth pole of the season, after yet another terrifically exciting qualifying session at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. The Briton will be joined on the front row for tomorrow’s race by team-mate Jenson Button, as Fernando Alonso faltered in the closing minutes to only manage 10th on the grid.

Daniel Ricciardo was the first driver to take to the track as Q1 got underway, with the Australian driver setting the initial pace with a 01:26.760. However, this time was immediately bettered by the Lotus of Jerome D’Ambrosio, who is standing in for the banned Romain Grosjean for this weekend. Nico Hulkenberg’s qualifying came to a premature end early on, as the German driver coasted to a halt as he negotiated turn 1 with what looked like a mechanical issue on his Force India.

The remaining Force India of Paul di Resta then momentarily went fastest with a 01:25.384, before the Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher stormed to the top in 1st and 2nd respectively. With Mercedes power looking competitive this weekend, local favorites Ferrari were quick to quell the German’s advantage as Fernando Alonso stormed to the top with a 01:24.540. The Spaniard then proceeded to improve upon his time, with a 01:24.175 as the Mercedes of Michael Schumacher out-braked himself in spectacular fashion as the F1 veteran bumped across the grass at turn 1.

With Nico Hulkenberg looking set to be starting the race from 24th on the grid without setting a timed lap, a battle began between the Caterham of Heikki Kovalainen and the Lotus of Jerome D’Ambrosio over who would progress to Q2. As the opening 20 minutes came to a conclusion, the Belgian driver was able to pip the Finn to progress through to the next session. This saw Heikki Kovalainen drop out after Q1 along with Nico Hulkenberg and the usual suspects of the remaining Caterham, the two Marussias and the two HRTs.

The sole remaining Force India of Paul di Resta was the first driver to take to the track as Q2 got underway, as the Scot set the first timed lap of the session with a 01:24.668. The Force India driver remained fastest as the session progressed, as the likes of Felipe Massa and Michael Schumacher made minor mistakes as they negotiated the ever tricky turn 1 chicane.

Paul di Resta’s reign at the top came to a sudden end as Fernando Alonso once again reasserted his authority over proceedings, setting a scintillating 01:24.242 for Ferrari. This incredibly quick lap time went unbeaten as the session entered its closing stages, as both Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber looked in danger of dropping out after Q2. Luckily for the reigning World Champion, he was able to narrowly progress through to the top-ten shootout, whereas team-mate Mark Webber dropped out along with Pastor Maldonado, Sergio Perez, Bruno Senna, Daniel Ricciardo, Jerome D’Ambrosio and Jean-Eric Vergne.

The all-important top-ten shootout started with both Ferraris immediately taking to the track, with Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa eager to experiment with their ‘synchronized qualifying’ tactic. However, this tactic failed to benefit the Ferrari duo, with Felipe Massa only just setting the initial pace with a 01:24.436. This time kept the Brazilian driver at the top for only a short while, before the McLaren of Lewis Hamilton blitzed the timing sheets with a 01:24.010.

As the drivers came around to complete their final flying laps, Fernando Alonso was still unable to reap the rewards of Ferrari’s ‘synchronized qualifying’ tactic, as the Spaniard floundered around in a lowly 10th position. Felipe Massa went 2nd, momentarily looking set to start alongside his former sparring partner. However, Jenson Button had other ideas and disposed of the Brazilian driver to qualify 2nd, and secure a McLaren front row lock out. With the second row consisting of Felipe Massa and Michael Schumacher (with Paul di Resta set to drop five places due to a gearbox change), tomorrow’s Italian Grand Prix has all of the ingredients to be another enthralling spectacle around the historic Autodromo Nazionale di Monza.

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