2011 Italian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Sebastian Vettel conquered Monza with a commanding victory, leaving Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso to complete the podium. Behind them, Lewis Hamilton spent much of the afternoon trying to find a way past Michael Schumacher.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:22.275
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Fastest-lap time	1:26.187 on lap 52
First	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Second	Jenson Button	McLaren
Third	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
9 September 2011	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
9 September 2011	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
10 September 2011	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
10 September 2011	Qualifying	14:00
11 September 2011	Race	14:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel arrived at round 13 leading the 2011 F1 World Championship on 259 points, with Mark Webber on 167. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 426 points.

Race entries

The 12 teams kept the same race line-ups for the Italian Grand Prix. Karun Chandhok, Nico Hulkenberg also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Lewis Hamilton led a dry FP1 after a quiet opening half-hour. Drivers reported sliding on the resurfaced track, while several Lotus and Virgin cars suffered technical problems. Teams also faced a setup choice: exploit unrestricted practice and qualifying DRS with more downforce, or prioritise straight-line performance for the race.

Sebastian Vettel narrowly led FP2 despite a relatively low speed through the main-straight trap, illustrating Red Bull’s different setup approach. Traffic compromised Lewis Hamilton’s best lap, while Sebastien Buemi crashed exiting Parabolica. Daniel Ricciardo lost most of the session to an electrical fault, and Kamui Kobayashi stopped near the finish.

Sebastian Vettel led FP3 as Red Bull’s late soft-tyre runs underlined its competitiveness at a circuit that had previously been difficult for the team. McLaren continued working on setup, with Jenson Button reporting oversteer and the mechanics changing torsion bars. Nico Rosberg recovered useful running after the KERS problem that had disrupted his Friday.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2011 Italian Grand Prix FP1, 9 September 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:23.865	18
2	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.921s	19
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+1.366s	25
4	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+1.594s	24
5	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+2.685s	23
6	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+2.760s	20
7	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+2.782s	20
8	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+2.811s	24
9	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.829s	28
10	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.831s	15
11	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+2.834s	21
12	15	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.961s	21
13	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.971s	25
14	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+3.131s	29
15	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+3.500s	25
16	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	+3.520s	23
17	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+3.568s	25
18	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+3.627s	24
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+5.674s	10
20	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	+6.283s	19
21	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+6.744s	27
22	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+6.754s	24
23	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+7.187s	12
24	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+8.034s	22

Free Practice 2 Classification

2011 Italian Grand Prix FP2, 9 September 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:24.010	37
2	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.036s	21
3	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.337s	39
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.356s	33
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.423s	31
6	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.458s	32
7	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.498s	30
8	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.087s	39
9	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.172s	37
10	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	+1.315s	38
11	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.440s	31
12	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.486s	39
13	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.673s	37
14	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+1.748s	29
15	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.192s	36
16	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.343s	40
17	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+4.337s	5
18	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	+4.549s	32
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+4.595s	32
20	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+4.794s	25
21	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+5.152s	34
22	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+5.174s	29
23	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.612s	34
24	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+5.831s	7

Free Practice 3 Classification

2011 Italian Grand Prix FP3, 10 September 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:23.170	18
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.364s	19
3	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.498s	14
4	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.571s	17
5	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.617s	16
6	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.705s	22
7	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.944s	20
8	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.963s	14
9	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.373s	21
10	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.411s	22
11	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	+1.683s	20
12	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.719s	19
13	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+1.778s	22
14	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+2.091s	21
15	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.149s	19
16	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.256s	19
17	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+2.269s	22
18	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.369s	19
19	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	+4.158s	19
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+4.321s	21
21	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.016s	23
22	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+5.271s	22
23	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+5.792s	17
24	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+7.146s	16

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Lewis Hamilton second and Jenson Button third.

Sebastian Vettel secured pole ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. Fernando Alonso qualified fourth for Ferrari, while Mark Webber started fifth alongside Felipe Massa.

Qualifying Classification

2011 Italian Grand Prix Qualifying, 10 September 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:24.002	1:22.914	1:22.275	15
2	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:23.976	1:23.172	1:22.725	16
3	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:24.013	1:23.031	1:22.777	17
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:24.134	1:23.342	1:22.841	18
5	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:24.148	1:23.387	1:22.972	14
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:24.523	1:23.681	1:23.188	17
7	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	1:24.486	1:23.741	1:23.530	19
8	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:25.108	1:23.671	1:23.777	13
9	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:24.550	1:23.335	1:24.477	17
10	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	1:24.914	1:24.157	no time	20
11	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:24.574	1:24.163	—	15
12	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:24.595	1:24.209	—	18
13	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	1:24.975	1:24.648	—	19
14	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:24.798	1:24.726	—	16
15	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:25.113	1:24.845	—	17
16	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:25.164	1:24.932	—	18
17	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:24.879	1:25.065	—	16
18	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	1:25.334	—	—	11
19	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	1:26.647	—	—	12
20	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	1:27.184	—	—	13
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	1:27.591	—	—	9
22	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	1:27.609	—	—	11
23	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	1:28.054	—	—	12
24	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	1:28.231	—	—	11

What happened in the 2011 Italian Grand Prix?

Alonso made a superb start to take the lead, while Liuzzi lost control on the grass and crashed into the first-corner pack, eliminating Petrov and Rosberg. The safety car gathered the surviving field.

After the restart, Vettel attacked Alonso through Curva Grande, briefly putting wheels on the grass before completing the move. Webber’s collision with Massa damaged his front wing, which later became trapped beneath the car and sent him into retirement.

Hamilton became caught behind Schumacher, whose straight-line speed made passing difficult. Button found a route past both and then overtook Alonso to reach second, but Vettel was already clear.

Vettel won ahead of Button and Alonso, with Hamilton fourth and Schumacher fifth. Alguersuari recovered from a low grid position to seventh, while Bruno Senna scored his first Formula 1 points in ninth.

Further down the points places, Jaime Alguersuari, Paul di Resta, Bruno Senna and Sébastien Buemi completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2011 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 284 points, followed by Fernando Alonso on 172. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 451, with McLaren on 325.

2011 Italian Grand Prix race results

The 2011 Italian Grand Prix was held on 11 September 2011, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	53	1:20:46.172	25
2	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	53	+9.590	18
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	53	+16.909	15
4	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	53	+17.417	12
5	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	53	+32.677	10
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	53	+42.993	8
7	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	52	+1 Lap	6
8	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	52	+1 Lap	4
9	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	52	+1 Lap	2
10	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	52	+1 Lap	1
11	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	52	+1 Lap	0
12	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	52	+1 Lap	0
13	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	51	+2 Laps	0
14	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	51	+2 Laps	0
15	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	51	+2 Laps	0
NC	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	39	+14 Laps	0
Ret	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	32	Gearbox	0
Ret	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	21	Gearbox	0
Ret	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	9	Hydraulics	0
Ret	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	4	Collision damage/Accident	0
Ret	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	1	Gearbox	0
Ret	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	0	Collision	0
Ret	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	0	Collision	0
Ret	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	0	Collision	0

Daniel Ricciardo was not classified as he completed less than 90% of the winner’s race distance.

2011 Italian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	52	1:26.187	241.971
2	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	52	1:26.207	241.915
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	49	1:26.557	240.937
4	9	Bruno Senna	Renault	51	1:26.895	240.000
5	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	53	1:26.924	239.919
6	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	50	1:27.191	239.185
7	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	46	1:27.402	238.607
8	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	52	1:28.054	236.841
9	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	51	1:28.202	236.443
10	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	49	1:28.357	236.028
11	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	49	1:28.377	235.975
12	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	51	1:28.934	234.497
13	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	29	1:29.403	233.267
14	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	50	1:29.639	232.653
15	21	Jarno Trulli	Team Lotus	50	1:29.825	232.171
16	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	21	1:30.000	231.720
17	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	51	1:30.783	229.721
18	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	4	1:30.994	229.188
19	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	8	1:31.455	228.033
20	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	36	1:32.013	226.650

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2011 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2011 Italian Grand Prix.

2011 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	284
2	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	172
3	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	167
4	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	167
5	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	158
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	82
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	56
8	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	52
9	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Renault	34
10	Nick Heidfeld	German	Renault	34
11	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	27
12	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	24
13	Jaime Alguersuari	Spanish	Toro Rosso	16
14	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	13
15	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	12
16	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	8
17	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Williams	4
18	Bruno Senna	Brazilian	Renault	2
19	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	1
20	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish	Sauber	0
21	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Team Lotus	0
22	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Team Lotus	0
23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian	HRT	0
24	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Virgin Racing	0
25	Timo Glock	German	Virgin Racing	0
26	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian	HRT	0
27	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	HRT	0
28	Karun Chandhok	Indian	Team Lotus	0

2011 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	451
2	McLaren	325
3	Ferrari	254
4	Mercedes	108
5	Renault	70
6	Force India	36
7	Sauber	35
8	Toro Rosso	29
9	Williams	5
10	Team Lotus	0
11	HRT	0
12	Virgin Racing	0

2011 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2011 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	27 March
2	2011 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	10 April
3	2011 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	17 April
4	2011 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	8 May
5	2011 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	22 May
6	2011 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	29 May
7	2011 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	12 June
8	2011 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	26 June
9	2011 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
10	2011 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	24 July
11	2011 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	31 July
12	2011 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	28 August
13	2011 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	11 September
14	2011 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	25 September
15	2011 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	9 October
16	2011 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	16 October
17	2011 Indian Grand Prix	Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida	30 October
18	2011 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	13 November
19	2011 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	27 November