2025 Italian Grand Prix: Fast Facts

The Monza event is always special but this year, it is even more so. It will be the 75th time that the Autodromo has hosted a Formula 1 World Championship race, more than any other circuit in the history of motor racing’s blue riband category.

For Pirelli, this weekend marks the end of celebrations for having taken part in 500 Grands Prix, a milestone reached at Zandvoort last Sunday. As was the case for the Dutch Grand Prix, here in Italy, the twenty cars on track and all the slick tyres will feature a special logo, which was presented in London on 18 February, as part of the celebrations for 75 years of Formula 1.

The FORMULA 1 PIRELLI GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA 2025, to give the Monza race its official title, takes place around 20 kilometres from the headquarters of the sport’s Global Tyre Partner and Sunday’s podium will reflect this special link. The top three finishers will sport a unique Podium Cap, part of the 2025 collection produced by Pirelli Design, with creative input from the designer Denis Dekovic. The Monza Podium Cap which features the “azzurro” blue recalling the Italian sky above the “Temple of Speed”, as well as the 500 GP logo.

Those three drivers, along with the representative of the winning team, will also hold aloft a very special trophy, which goes by the name of “Chimera.” This name was given it by Nico Vascellari, the Italian artist responsible for the fifth edition of the project set up by Pirelli and Pirelli HangarBicocca. In fact, since 2021, an Italian artist has been entrusted with the creation of a trophy for the Italian race of which Pirelli is the Title Sponsor, incorporating the contemporary artistic expression from traditional art venues to the circuits of the world of Formula 1. The first commission in 2021 was handed to Alice Ronchi, followed in 2022 by Patrick Tuttofuoco, in 2023 by Ruth Beraha and in 2024 by Andrea Sala.

The theme of mythology and speed, already visited with “Tifone” in 2022, is continued this year with “Chimera.” The enigmatic sculpture created by Vascellari represents the movement of the three fastest creatures in the air, in water and on land, the peregrine falcon, the sail fish and the cheetah respectively. Their individual aerodynamics, linked to the wings and talons in the case of the bird, the tail for the cat and the fin for the fish, come together to create a single fantastical creature, evoking evolution, metamorphosis and change. The trophies are made from aluminium, a lightweight material also used in the manufacture of Formula 1 cars, employing a process that starts from a two-dimensional drawing, which is then transformed through organic modelling and 3D resin printing, and culminates in investment casting, one of the oldest sculpting techniques. This unites artisanal craftsmanship with highly innovative methods.

“The reference to the animal world in this trophy stems from mankind’s natural fascination with it, an instinctive feeling that goes beyond and expands our limits of speed, flight and endurance,” explains Vascellari. “Animals are an inexhaustible source of inspiration. When I designed the trophy, I thought about the moment the driver lifts it high above his head: a symbolic gesture to elevate the animal world and nature above us, in an attempt to restore balance. It is also a celebration of nature’s ability to be a source of inspiration.”

“Chimera” will be unveiled at Monza during the Pirelli Tyres Talk session, for media only, in the Pirelli Hot Laps garage (box 7) on Friday 5 September, immediately after the first Formula 1 free practice session. On hand, apart from the artist will be Aldo Costa, Chief Technical Officer of Dallara Automobili and Mario Isola, Pirelli Director of Motorsport.

The Compounds

There is no change in compounds compared to last year, when the track had just been resurfaced for the Italian Grand Prix at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza. The C3 is the Hard, the C4 Medium and the C5 Soft. Twelve months on, inevitably the surface will have aged, but it is unlikely to have any significant effect on the range of possible strategies at this circuit, where cars run in the lowest aerodynamic downforce configuration of the season.

It is likely that the most popular choices for the race itself will be the Hard and Medium. One can assume that the level of graining will be lower than last year as the track will now be bedded in. Time lost in the pit lane for a tyre change is among the longest of the season, so teams will try and run as long a stint as possible, keeping degradation under control, with the aim of only changing tyres once.

It is difficult to overtake at Monza, primarily because of the reduced effectiveness of the DRS, with the cars running minimum aero downforce levels. This too tends to swing the balance in favour of a one-stop strategy. On the other hand, temperature can have the opposite effect given that September in Lombardy can sometimes still feel like the height of summer. This can speed up tyre degradation, which would make a two-stop more competitive.

The Track

The Monza track holds the record for the highest average race speed, courtesy of Michael Schumacher in a Ferrari with a figure of 247.586 km/h in 2003, as well as the fastest average speed of 264.362 km/h for a qualifying lap, set by Lewis Hamilton at the wheel of a Mercedes in 2020. Last year, pole went to Lando Norris with an average speed of 263 km/h. Easy to understand therefore why the venue is universally known as the Temple of Speed.

The 5.793 kilometre track has 11 corners and drivers spend 80% of the lap at full throttle, the cars running the lowest aero downforce level of the season with the aim of reducing drag to a minimum. In this context, stability under braking and traction out of the corners is key, especially at the chicanes such as the Prima Variante and the Variante Ascari, where the drivers need to scrub off speed very rapidly. Lateral forces come into play at the fastest corners, such as Biassono and the legendary Parabolica, now renamed in honour of Michele Alboreto.

After the track was completely resurfaced in 2024, this year Monza has concentrated on improvements to the public areas. Four thousand seats have been added for spectators in the general viewing areas, without assigned grandstand seating while the hospitality area above the pits has also increased in capacity. Because of this, the media centre has been relocated to a temporary structure on two floors, with seating for 400, next to the old pit garages.

The Stats

This is the 75^th year that Monza will host the Italian Grand Prix as a round of the Formula 1 World Championship. Although this is actually the 76^th Italian Grand Prix, as for one year only, in 1980, the race was held in Imola. Even so, Monza tops the list of tracks that have hosted the most Grands Prix, ahead of Monaco and Silverstone.

Not only do two of the sports greats, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton, share the top of the table for world championship crowns, they are also the most successful drivers at Monza with five wins apiece. They both have eight podium finishes to their name, while the Englishman also has the most pole positions on seven.

With twenty wins, Ferrari is the most successful team, almost a third of all the Italian races. It heads the fields for pole positions (23) and podium finishes (72). McLaren is second in all three of these lists with 11 wins, 12 pole positions and 31 podium finishes.

Another interesting “Italian” statistic concerning Monza is that it was the scene of the only race win for a Ferrari engine not fitted to a car built in Maranello. It happened in 2008 when Sebastian Vettel pulled off one of the most unexpected wins in the history of Formula 1 at the wheel of a Toro Rosso. In fact, the Faenza-based team produced another surprise 12 years later, when under the name AlphaTauri, it won in Monza again, with Pierre Gasly at the wheel.

The Italian Grand Prix has decided the outcome of the Drivers’ world championship 11 times, in 1950, 1956, 1961, 1963, 1966, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1978 and 1979. For Jackie Stewart, it happened twice, the Scotsman crowned in 1969 and 1973.

How to Watch the 2025 Italian Grand Prix

Formula 1 fans around the globe can catch all the action from the 2025 Italian Grand Prix through various broadcasters and streaming services.

In the United Kingdom, viewers can watch every session live on Sky Sports F1, with comprehensive coverage of the practice sessions, qualifying, and the race itself.

For fans in the United States, the Italian Grand Prix will be available through ESPN and its associated channels. ESPN offers extensive coverage of F1, including live broadcasts and replays. Cord-cutters can also stream the race live through various over-the-top (OTT) services that carry ESPN channels.

Viewers in Australia can tune in to watch the Grand Prix weekend unfold live on Fox Sports, which offers complete coverage of F1 races. For online streaming, fans can subscribe to Kayo Sports, a streaming platform that includes all Fox Sports content.

Additionally, F1 TV Pro offers live streaming of every track session to viewers in many countries worldwide.

This subscription service provides access to onboard cameras, team radios, live timing, and more, for an immersive viewing experience.

Remember to check the local listings and services for the most up-to-date information regarding broadcast times and availability in your region.

Italian Grand Prix Fast Facts

• Monza is nicknamed ‘Temple of Speed’ and for good reason. Recorded top speeds through the speed trap during the Grand Prix typically top 350 km/h.
• Due to the long straights and large portion of lap spent in eighth gear, Monza is one of the lowest tracks for gear changes per lap, with only 29.
• No circuit on the 2025 calendar sees the driver spend a higher percentage of the lap at full throttle than Monza. This equates to 76% of lap time, and 82% of lap distance.
• The run to the first corner from pole is one of the longest on the calendar at 476m. Only Spain, Silverstone, and Mexico are longer.
• The high-speed nature means the Italian Grand Prix is often one of the shortest races of the year. If run uninterrupted, it usually takes around one hour and 15 minutes from lights out to the chequered flag.
• Monza can also prove to be one of the hottest races of the season for air temperature, with averages highs of 28.2C, and 31.3C max.
• The circuit contains just 11 corners, four to the left and seven to the right. That is the second fewest of the year, behind only Austria which has 10.
• The Italian Grand Prix is the only Grand Prix to have appeared on every single F1 calendar since 1950.
• No circuit in F1 history has held more Grands Prix than Monza, which will host its 75th race in 2025.
• Mercedes has recorded seven wins at the Italian Grand Prix. Two with Juan Manuel Fangio in 1954 and 1955, four with Lewis Hamilton and one with Nico Rosberg.
• 2025 will be Kimi Antonelli’s first-ever Italian Grand Prix in F1. It comes at the circuit where he made his first FP1 rookie debut in 2024. Kimi won races at Monza in Italian F4 in 2022 and FRECA in 2023.