Gran Premier d'Italia

[Andrew Rowland]

Gran Premier d'Italia a Monza

The Italian Grand Prix at Monza being set just a week after San Marino has meant that the British teams have had no time to get their cars back to the UK, rebuilt and repaired and then back for today's practice session.

All the cars have however had a good overhaul with special attention to lubrication, several of the teams have noticed that the hot weather on the continent having evaporated off more than might be usual at home.

Monza is one of the largest circuits the F1 circus will race on this year and has a mixture of a very long straight and some testing curves and chicanes.

It will certainly be a test for the drivers as the revised layout this year has not been driven by all. It is also rather dirty with a lot of debri on it, blown on by the scirocco which had been blowing the sand up from the Sahara the week before the race.

Thursday's test session dawned hot and dry and as the Italians were by now all on holiday enjoying 'ferragosto', there were no excuses for all the tifosi to return to Monza to watch the most important race of their season. Many were indeed camping in the park in which the circuit was constructed many years ago.



- The cars line up for the start of the first practice session.

The practice session again showed the instability of the Tyrrell P34 and it is possible that the lack of a return to the UK was hampering performance as the wishbone damage sustained at San Marino could not be repaired in time for Monza.

Conversely,the Tyrrell 002 was showing better acceleration after the careful lubrication overhaul and on this tricky circuit the weight was perhaps not going to be such a penalty due to the long twisting section. Francois Cevert appeared cautiously optimistic for the long distance pace on race day.

The March's brakes were still good, so much was expected from Peterson who reported that he felt confident of another good result. Only time will tell if this will materialise. The gearbox still sounded rough and one hopes that it will be able to last the series.

The Lotus 72 was still looking smooth, although Fittipaldi suggested it had gained some understeer since the last outing, possibly due to the track temperature which was slightly lower than at San Marino.

The Brabham BT42 too showed no signs of any hiccups as Reutemann reported that it felt very smooth. The mechanics had clearly given the gearbox an oil change and hardly any noise was now evident from the new multi ratio gear system.

All the drivers reported that the track felt grippy despite the debris and they expected it to clean up once they got some rubber down. No one was reporting excessive tyre wear at this point in the season.

The track was fairly smooth throughout the corners but the main straight was very bumpy. A situation which upset a lot of the teams as they struggled to balance outright speed with the risk of swerving over the dips and bumps. Despite several cars getting fully airbourne over the weekend there were no incidents resulting from this particular track condition.



- Cevert gets airborne on the bumpy main straight during practice.

[Andrew Rowland]

Qualifying at Monza, by agreement with the drivers, was spread over two days, with the best time from both sessions counting to create an average. Consistency then was going to play a part.

The sequence of qualification was in reverse order from the result of the first race such that Chris Amon was the first to take to the track for the first session on Friday morning. He reported that his Tecno still felt down on power but the lack of outright horsepower was probably not hampering him as much as in the previous race given that Monza only has a single long straight unlike San Marino with its three medium length straights.

The format was once again the best lap time taken from 1 minute. In that time around five flying laps were theoretically possible.



- First out was Amon who reported improvements since the first race.

The Tecno again proved a little heavy although it is fair to say that Amon was also unlucky to be first out on a dirty track that had not warmed up in the sun as yet. Too many spins saw him only achieve two flying laps with a best time of 13.107s.

Next out came Cevert in his Tyrrell 002. His car was apparently handling rather better than previously as he managed four flying laps, working up to an 11.538s lap on his third attempt. His acceleration was significantly better than at San Marino but the overall weight was still hampering braking into the corners due to too much momentum.

Depailler was third to take to the track which by now was showing signs of having a 'clean' racing line. He span twice but of the remaining two flying laps achieved he got round in 11.825s which under the circumstances he was reasonably happy with.

Next out came the March 721X. Peterson was expecting a high placing after the qualification at San Marino and began to push perhaps a little too early as he too spun on lap four before managing to get properly into the groove. His third lap time stood then at 11.760s.



- Peterson waiting to go out to qualify.

So it was that with just two cars to go Cevert was still holding provisional pole which looked like being quite a reversal of fortunes from the previous race.

Fittipaldi was again characteristically smooth but lack of outright pace meant that he appeared penalised by the long straight. He achieved 4 flying laps with a best of just 12.132s, dropping him onto the back row much to his, and Colin Chapman's consternation.

Cevert still holding on then......

Out came Reutemann in the Brabham BT42 and a hush fell on the crowd. The car seemed hardly audible as the tyres on the track were virtually the only sound. He built up the laps and on his final tour, and indeed the very last lap of the session, he pulled out a 11.504s to take the provisional pole for day 1 from Francois Cevert by just 34 hundreths of a second.



- Reutemann at full speed on the straight. He had his Brabham BT42 running well.

Qualifying Session 1 San Marino GP result:
1st: Brabham BT42 - Reutemann - 11.504s
2nd: Tyrrell 002 - Cevert - 11.538s
3rd: March 721X - Peterson - 11.760s
4th: Tyrrell P34 - Depailler - 11.825s
5th: Lotus 72/C - Fittipaldi - 12.132s
6th: Tecno P123/6 - Amon - 13.107s

[Andrew Rowland]

The second day of qualification dawned hotter than the previous days and the Saturday session was run in the afternoon after the track had warmed up from the hot August sun.

Well cleaned now the grip was reported to be excellent by all the drivers after they made the prescribed two warm up laps, the drivers exiting the pits in the same order as the day before.

What became immediately clear was that the track was slower on the Saturday or perhaps the engine power was down due to the increased air temperature. Amon put in three consistent laps despite a small spin on his final attempt but only achieved a 14.125s, over a second slower than the previous day's fastest lap.

Next out came Cevert who appeared over cautious, perhaps aware of how much he had to lose from the first session. He got round with a best of 13.240s, over one and a half seconds off his Friday best!

Depailler had an extremely torrid session, spinning out of every lap. He was complaining of instability in the corners, understeer, lack of downforce and just about everything he could think of that the car couldn't do. One wonders whether the car had indeed changed so much between sessions! It is however fair to point out that this is the first time at Monza for Depailler and perhaps therefore he just needed more time to get used to all its nuances. The fact is that the record shows his best time for the session at 34.530s, a fairly major upset to the race form.

Following those three Peterson pretty much just had to keep it on the track to get a decent spot on the grid. He managed three fliers too with one small spin and this gave him a 12.629s best lap, just nine tenths off his previous day's attempt. Provisional pole was his at this point in the session.

Fittipaldi needed a 12.25s lap to beat Peterson then, a feat that despite four quick laps in succession he just couldn't achieve. His best of 12.713s having been gained on lap three. Interestingly however the track seemed to be speeding up as the sun began to move from its zenith and the track cooled. This time was less than six tenths off the previous day's effort.

Reutemann then had only to achieve a 12.8s lap to grab his second pole in succession. He completed just three flying laps before suffering a similar fate to many by spinning off on his fourth. His third lap proved good enough however as he got round in just 12.278s.

Qualifying Aggregate time, Monza GP race grid order:
1st: Brabham BT42 - Reutemann - 23.782s
2nd: March 721X - Peterson - 24.389s
3rd: Tyrrell 002 - Cevert - 24.778s
4th: Lotus 72/C - Fittipaldi - 24.845s
5th: Tecno P123/6 - Amon - 27.232s
6th: Tyrrell P34 - Depailler - 46.355s

Depailler has left himself a lot to do from the back of the grid so it will be interesting to see what he can achieve tomorrow.

Certainly, the P34's form aside, the grid has echoes of the first Grand Prix's line up. Is a pattern emerging or are the apparent similarities due to the type of tracks being similar? Only time will tell.

[Andrew Rowland]

---

Technical difficulties prevented photographs being shown from yesterday's session:



- A driver's eye view as the cars start to prepare for the second qualifying session.



- Reutemann about to go out for his pole lap.

[Andrew Rowland]

As the crowds gathered, packing out every conceivable (and some inconceivable) spaces around the track, the drivers pulled on their gloves for what was to prove another testing race.

The teams made their last minute adjustments and wheeled the cars onto the grid. Certainly it was cooler than San Marino and it was hoped that would help driver fatigue and engine power alike.

All the cars got off the line well but disaster struck in the first corner as Peterson lost a wheel from the March! The ensuing chaos saw several drivers weave to avoid him and others had to take to the grass.

The stewards immediately stopped the race and a new start was projected for five minutes later. Peterson managed to drive round on three wheels and get into the pits. While he gesticulated impatiently from inside the cockpit his mechanics worked feverishly to check for damage and replace the front wheel which they did just in time for Peterson to take the restart.

The crowd were getting impatient by that time so it was perhaps fortunate that the organisers had decided on just five minutes.

This time they all got off well and the race began to settle down. Fittipaldi made a good start passing Cevert on the first lap but otherwise they all ran in grid order until quarter distance.

Fittipaldi was lapping quicker than both Cevert behind and Peterson in front and as his Lotus got into the groove his lap times settled to within 5 hundreths of those of Reutemann who, out in front again was comfortably in the lead by the length of the straight.

Peterson had a spin on lap 7 as he came under pressure from Fittipaldi who was lapping two tenths quicker than him. After that Peterson slowly lost touch and slipped back towards Cevert. Depailler from the back of the grid managed to pass Amon in the Tecno on lap 10 but was unable to get on terms with Cevert.



- Depailler noses his Tyrrell P34 past the Tecno as Amon understeers and gets too much drift through Ascari.

By half distance the order was:
1st Reutemann who had completed 18 laps and obtained a fastest lap of 12.266s.
2nd Fittipaldi also on his 18th lap but some three quarters of a lap behind Reutemann. His fastest lap so far was a 12.326s.
3rd Peterson who having composed himself after his spin had not lost more time. His fastest lap at half distance was 12.532s having completed 15 laps.
4th, just behind Peterson, was Cevert with a fastest lap of 12.772s.
5th lay Depailler in the Tyrrell P34 with a best lap of 12.958s also on the 15th lap.
6th was Amon, bringing up the rear but still on the same lap as the others and indeed just behind Depailler. His fastest lap was 13.292s but as the car was at least feeling consistent he was not dropping back significantly from those in front.



- Retemann slip streams Amon into the Curva Grande as he comes up to lap him for the first time on lap 8.

As the race moved into the second half Peterson's March seemed to move up a gear, plugging in laps in the low 11.5s bracket a whole second faster than earlier in the race. Could he get back on terms with Fittipaldi's Lotus?

Similarly the Tyrrell P34/2 with Depailler at the wheel finally seemed to get some handling back which allowed him to pass Cevert after lap after lap of wheel to wheel action. He was running in clean air by lap 23 in fourth place.

Cevert was only going backwards after half way and as Amon put in a spirited performance he gradually reeled him in. The Tyrrell dropping from fourth at half distance to dicing with Amon towards the end of the race.



- Running on the outside line out of the Parabolica Amon's Tecno P123/6 out accelerates Cevert in his Tyrrell 002.

Fittipaldi had his Lotus 72 still running consistently and although he was lapping slower than Peterson the three lap deficit at half distance gave him sufficient space that he didn't need to push too hard and risk a spin or worse.



- Out onto the vast Rettilineo (straight), Reutemann and Fittipaldi proved to be the class of the field at Monza.

Disaster struck the March on lap 22 as a wheel nut sheered off in a repeat of the first lap problem. Again he got the car back to the pits but this time he lost four laps in total before his mechanics could get him back out on track.

This dropped him to the back of the field where on lap 26 he was 3 laps behind Amon. He then put in a spirited chase to try to get on terms with Amon which was possibly the wake up call that the Tecno driver needed. With the crowd willing him on he pushed his car to its limit, dipping below the 13s lap time barrier for the first time.

He passed Cevert in his ailing Tyrrell on lap 30 and as Peterson unlapped himself once he was suddenly only two laps behind Cevert, now running in fifth. Could he catch him?

In the second half of the race Reutemann in the Brabham BT42 just kept on pushing and slowly opened up the gap and by lap 32 he came round to lap Fittipaldi.



- Late in the race Depailler runs wide to let Fittipaldi through on the entry to Il Lesmo. Reutemann can be seen in the background about to lap Fittipaldi.

Depailler in the P34/2 had of course inherited third when Peterson went out which was a huge come back from last place on the grid.

The final standings of the Gran Premier d'Italia 2015 are:
1st Reutemann - Brabham BT42 - 39 laps - fastest lap of the race 11.272s.
2nd Fittipaldi - Lotus 72 +1.5 laps, fastest lap 11.663s
3rd Depailler - Tyrrell P34/2 +5 laps, fastest lap 11.953s
4th Amon - Tecno P123/6 +6 laps, fastest lap 12.925s
5th Cevert - Tyrrell 002 +7 laps, fastest lap 12.237s
6th Peterson - March 721X +8 laps, fastest lap 11.507s



- The podium.

Overall the tifosi were satisfied. With Ferrari absent they could hardly have expected miracles, so they consoled themselves that Amon's fourth place in the race was a step in the right direction and saved their 'honour'. Especially as it also allowed him to step up a place in the overall standings.

The GPdDFV 2015 points table:
1. Brabham BT42 - 50 + 50 = 100pts
2. Lotus 72 - 44 + 44 = 88pts
3. March 721X - 40 + 30 = 70pts
4. Tecno P123/6 - 30 + 36 = 66pts
5. Tyrrell 002 - 33 + 33 = 66pts
6. Tyrrell P34/2 (36-10)=26 + (40-10*)=30 = 56pts

(Note. The Tecno is placed higher than the Tyrrell 002 due to the fourth place finish.)
* The chassis width penalty will be imposed at each event unless the team redesign the chassis to comply with the regulations.

So despite the upset of a last place for the March the chassis width penalty for the Tyrrell P34/2 means that the third place is retained.

The Brabham BT42 is going to be hard to beat perhaps although the Lotus 72 is keeping the pressure on.

Certainly only 4 points separate fifth place from the bottom step of the podium so in the mid field there is still everything to play for.

It will certainly be fascinating to see how the cars fare as they leave Europe for their world tour!

[David Mitcham]

Hi Andi

Another great report. Many thanks for putting in all this effort. Maybe the championship will be a bit closer than it first appeared.

Best Regards

David

[Andrew Rowland]

Its not really been an effort David - its been an enormous amount of fun!

Seeing these cars actually race in anger against one another has been the culmination of about 5 years passion. Building them in isolation and covering a few laps against nsr rtr cars on club practice night is not really what i'm interested in!! I cannot of course hide my disappointment that i've had to bolster the field with my own past builds given the lack of other entrants but hey, it doesn't really matter. Phil Kalbfell will add a car now that i'm sending the cars off to New Zealand so that makes seven.

I'm thinking that by the end of the year we'll have covered three continents and about 8 tracks which is a true test of these cars.

Its also interesting to me that one of the main concerns was damage to wings and other appendages which of course may still happen but actually in the hands of professional slot racers these well built cars appear quite strong enough to cope.

Cheers for now and thank you for your entry which i think will be quite competitive on shorter, more technical circuits.

Andi