What time is the Italian GP this weekend? And who are the favourites to win?

Ah, the Italian Grand Prix. Just sounds right, doesn’t it? And it should: Italy is the nation that gave us Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, Maserati… so it’s little wonder F1 has enjoyed such a rich history here.

Along with the British Grand Prix, the Italian GP is the only other race to have been ever-present on the F1 championship calendar since its inception in 1950. And 2022 is no different.

This year the teams arrive with the title battle more or less settled: Red Bull’s Max Verstappen leads the standings by a ludicrously healthy 109 points, with teammate Sergio Perez and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc tied for second place.

After emerging as the only driver capable of challenging Verstappen in the early part of the season Leclerc will be desperate to make up for his and his team’s disappointing form by taking the chequered flag in front of Ferrari’s home crowd - called the Tifosi - as he did back in 2019.

However, it might not be so simple for the frontrunners this weekend. The last two editions of the race have given us surprise winners: first Pierre Gasly securing his maiden F1 win for AlphaTauri in 2020, followed by Daniel Ricciardo’s shock victory for McLaren 12 months ago.

Here’s hoping for another spectacular edition of the Italian GP this Sunday…

What time is the Italian GP? And what time is qualifying?

If you’re based in the UK, the first practice session for the Italian GP gets underway at 1pm on Friday 9 September, followed by a second shakedown at 4pm. The third and final practice session begins at noon on Saturday 10 September.

Qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix will commence at 3pm on Saturday, while the race itself will take place on Sunday 11 September from 2pm sharp. So make sure you’ve stocked up on food and drinks before then (and taken a well-timed comfort break).

What’s the weather going to be like?

Dry. According to the latest weather forecasts there could be some rain in the air for Friday’s practice sessions, but the rest of the weekend should be warm and sunny. So little chance of showers to really shake things up for the race. Never mind.

Where is the Italian GP taking place?

The Italian GP is being held at Monza, as it has been every year bar one since 1950. Monza is known as the ‘Temple of Speed’ and with good reason: the circuit has a high-speed layout that means the drivers will spend the vast majority of each lap at full throttle, with only a handful of braking zones along the 5.793km (3.6mi) track.

How many laps is the Italian GP?

The Italian Grand Prix is 53 laps, which is the amount required to surpass the official F1 race distance of 300km. Because of the high-speed nature of the circuit, the Italian GP is often the shortest race of the season (assuming there are no safety car periods or red flag stoppages) because the cars race here at a higher average speed than anywhere else on the calendar.

Lewis Hamilton set the record for the fastest ever F1 lap at Monza in 2020: his time of 1:18.887s in qualifying meant he averaged a staggering 164.267mph on his way to pole position.

Who are the favourites for the Italian GP?

Going by the form book, you’d have to say Max Verstappen. Not only has he won 10 of this season’s 15 races so far (and the last four in a row), his Red Bull is also one of the fastest in a straight line; a key ingredient for success at a track like Monza. His teammate Sergio Perez will also want to make an impact on the race, although he’s struggled for form since winning the Monaco Grand Prix back in May.

You also shouldn’t discount Ferrari from this one: Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz will want to make amends for a disappointing season, especially as his team is running a special livery this weekend to celebrate 75 years of the famous Italian brand.

But as we touched on above, Monza has delivered shock results in recent years and there’s no reason why this edition of the race can’t either.

How can I watch the Italian GP?

British fans can watch the Italian GP live on Sky Sports’ dedicated F1 channel, or alternatively subscribe to Now TV in order to stream Sky’s coverage that way.

Failing that Channel 4 will broadcast free-to-air highlights of qualifying and the grand prix on Saturday and Sunday: 6.30pm for both those programmes, in case you were wondering.

Your other option is to tune in on the radio: BBC Radio 5 Live will have updates on the airwaves throughout the grand prix.

What’s the Top Gear view on the Italian GP?

The Italian Grand Prix at Monza is one of the greatest spectacles of the season, full of iconic sights like the turn 1 chicane, the flat-out Parabolica final corner or the podium celebrations, which will take place above a sea of passionate fans after the chequered flag is fallen. It’s an incredible thing to witness, regardless of who wins.

This year’s racier cars have improved the wheel-to-wheel action this season, but with a less powerful slipstream effect being the cost of being able to follow more closely, it remains to be seen what ground effect regulations will do to the racing at Monza. Let’s keep those fingers crossed, shall we?