Italy – EL2: Sainz in the wall, the Mercedes in good shape

The drivers know that the last free practice session of the weekend is a relatively calm session where you don't necessarily give your all on the track. With the most important deadlines approaching, the teams are prioritizing in-depth work and not lap times. And at Ferrari, unfortunately things did not turn out that way.

Already making a mistake during the final test session at Zandvoort seven days ago, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) suffered the same fate this Saturday morning. In a lap launched a little over half an hour from the checkerboard, the Iberian lost the rear of his car at the Ascari corner and hit the wall head on. Although stunned and in pain, the Scuderia driver was able to extricate himself from his SF21 but his presence on the Sprint Race grid remains pending. Her car has indeed suffered serious damage and it seems difficult to see it taking the start in just a few hours.

Huge shock for Carlos Sainz in the Ascari corner! 😮

Wing completely destroyed for Ferrari driver 😫#ItalianGP 🇮🇹

▶ https://t.co/7plkVVV12v pic.twitter.com/2O58HlQKQq

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) September 11, 2021

On the sporting side, the session was dominated by Mercedes. Very efficient at Monza, where the engine is very important, the German W12s have once again stormed the first two ranks of the timesheet. Beaten by his teammate in qualifying this Friday, Lewis Hamilton this time took over Valtteri Bottas as the second Sprint Race of the season looms.

Championship leader and main threat Toto wolff and his troop, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) again signs the 3rd time, thus proving that his RB16B remains a notch below the Mercedes W12.

Behind, the differences do not really reflect reality since Robert Kubica (Alfa Romeo) ranked 6th just one second behind Lewis Hamilton's mark. The Pole drove a single-seater without much fuel, which allowed him to peak into the Top 10. A Top 10 in which we find both Alpine with Esteban Ocon et Fernando Alonso 8e.

Fourth and fifth in qualifying on Friday, the drivers McLaren, Lando Norris et Daniel Ricciardo, were satisfied with the 10th and 12th times at the end of the morning this Saturday. Here again, their laps do not reflect reality since the two men alternated work on soft and medium tires surely for their strategy for this afternoon.