F1 Italy 2010

Classic tracks produce classic races. And at Monza, it can't get any more classic than a Ferrari taking pole position and then winning the race. Even better, on a circuit where passing is possible, there was so much wheel to wheel action it was one of the best races of the season, and there's still five more to go!

Button was my driver of the weekend. He opted for a contrary high down force set up on his car but made it work. He qualified second splitting the Ferraris with Alonso on pole and Massa third on the grid. Button snatched the lead on the first corner of the race and held that position for more than half the race against Alonso in a faster Ferrari. Button only lost the lead because he pitted before Alonso who put the clear track to good use. The Ferrari was quicker so I'm not sure that Button could have won, even with a better strategy, but it was a great effort.

Redbull was not supposed to do well at Monza which is a pure straight line power circuit, but Vettel and Webber still finished fourth and sixth respectively. Which, by coincidence, was exactly the reverse of how they qualified, so they both had very interesting races. Webber might have beaten Vettel, if Webber had continued to attack Hulkenberg, instead of expecting the stewards to give him a penalty, which they decided wasn't necessary.

Hamiliton tried a little too hard on the first lap and damaged his car. Even with the DNF, he retains second in the championship, but those kinds of errors are what might decide the title in the end. With only five races to go, there are still five drivers who could win the title. That's just astonishing and isn't something I'm used seeing in Formula 1.

F1 Italy

It was a good race but it was won on strategy, so there was not much on track action. Both Barrichello and Button delivered on their end by driving faultlessly. Hamilton made an error which cost him third place. I get that he is a racer but did he really think that he had a chance to catch and pass Button? Force India qualified second which once again showed how good their car is, but again ended up stuck behind a Ferrari to much of the race, much like what happened at Spa.

Redbull had a terrible weekend which has all but killed Vettel's and Webber's championship aspirations. Redbull still have a mathematical chance of winning the constructor's title but only if Brawn GP scores no points, which is not very likely. Ross Brawn is feeling confident enough that he is willing to let Button and Barrichello have a straight fight for the driver's championship.

The bad news for Barrichello is that Button seems to be back on form. Barrichello has a mathematical chance to win the championship, but that requires Button to have problems in the final races. Barrichello is going to need some luck to pull this off.