The paddock at Monza is buzzing with anticipation as Formula 1’s elite descend on the legendary Autodromo for the 2025 Italian Grand Prix, the 16th round of a season that’s already delivered its fair share of drama, surprises, and shifting fortunes. On September 5th, Fernando Alonso and the Aston Martin team rolled into the circuit, greeted by a flurry of cameras and fans, their arrival immortalized on Aston Martin’s social media with the caption, “Making moments in Monza.” It’s a fitting phrase for a weekend that promises plenty of action both on and off the track.
Alonso, currently sitting 12th in the drivers’ standings with 30 points, comes into Monza off the back of a ninth-place finish in the Netherlands—a result that netted him four points and kept Aston Martin in the hunt for a higher spot in the Constructors’ Championship. The green machines are sixth overall, with 62 points, while McLaren, led by championship frontrunner Oscar Piastri, continues to set the pace at the top, nearly doubling the tally of their nearest rivals.
Speaking at Thursday’s FIA press conference, Alonso was measured in his outlook for the weekend. “Let’s see. I think we come to Monza a little bit more cautious about our performance. Last efficiency circuit was Spa, and we were not that fast in Spa. So yeah, we’ll see. We made some changes after Spa on the set-up of the car and how we approach the weekends. So hopefully we can be a little bit better. But I think, you know, on paper, it’s not the same track, Monza, as the last two races,” he explained, referencing both the technical challenges of the Italian circuit and the team’s recent adjustments.
Alonso’s season has been a tale of steady improvement. “I think it is a lot better than at the start of the season. I think my first point in the championship came in race eight or race nine. So yeah, at the beginning we didn’t have a car to be in the top 10 on Sundays. And now it seems that we are able to fight in the midfield and to score points regularly. In the last nine races, I think I’ve been seven times in Q3, in the top 10. So definitely there is a very different car now,” he added, highlighting the aerodynamic gains that have made the AMR25 a more stable and competitive proposition.
Looking ahead, Alonso is keeping his expectations in check but remains optimistic about certain tracks suiting the Aston Martin package. “I think we have a couple of places that we think are more similar to Budapest and Zandvoort. Maybe Singapore can be one of those, maybe Brazil. But, you know, we’ve been surprised a little bit—sometimes negatively surprised, sometimes positively—so we are not really putting all the hopes in one or two races. We will go every weekend to give our maximum, like this one in Monza, even if it seems difficult. And yeah, we’ll see in Abu Dhabi how many points and which constructor position we have at the end.”
The press conference also featured rising stars Kimi Antonelli, representing Mercedes, and Franco Colapinto of Alpine. For Antonelli, Monza holds special significance. “It’s a really special place, and I think it’s going to be a special weekend because it’s not just my second home race, but obviously, as you said, this is where it all started with the announcement. So that’s why it’s going to be a very special one,” he reflected, recalling the whirlwind of his Mercedes signing a year prior. Antonelli, who learned valuable lessons from his debut home race at Imola, is determined to manage his energy and focus better this time around, saying, “I will be much more prepared, and I definitely know much better what to expect.”
Colapinto, meanwhile, is relishing his return to the scene of his Grand Prix debut. “Being back here in Monza after a year of my debut, it does bring a lot of flashbacks and memories back, which is always very nice. To win that surprise call last year, that I was jumping in this weekend, was a dream coming true, and a lot of things happened from there. So yeah, it’s really nice to be back here in Monza. It’s a track that I always like and I really enjoy driving in. It’s full of Tifosi, very passionate people and fans that support us, and it’s a great track to race. So yeah, can’t wait for it,” he said with a grin.
The trio also weighed in on the ongoing debate over race formats, with opinions split on whether shorter Grands Prix or more Sprint events would benefit the sport. Antonelli remarked, “Sprint weekends are fun because you have a lot of activity. You have to be on point straight away because you have one practice, then qualifying, and then you go into a Sprint race. But I think shorter races—I don’t think it would really work, because already now with long races, we do one-stop strategy with the tyres we have.” Alonso, ever the traditionalist, was skeptical that attention spans are the real issue, quipping, “Also, football matches are a little bit long. When I sit in front of the TV, I’m not watching the 90 minutes fully concentrated. I go to the kitchen, come back—there’s always some moments of distraction, and no one is talking about having 60-minute football matches or something like that. So it’s a problem of society and the kids, but not the sport.”
On the technical front, Alonso credited the team’s improved correlation between factory tools and on-track performance, particularly with the new floors and front wing introduced at Imola and Silverstone. “To trust the tools that we have in the factory and bring things to the track that actually deliver what was expected from them is obviously a very good thing. We didn’t have that in 2023 and in 2024. So yeah, it’s good to go back to a more normal factory-track kind of correlation and develop the 2026 car next winter knowing that the tools are correct.”
As the drivers prepare for Monza’s unique demands—its long straights, punishing chicanes, and raucous Italian crowds—there’s an undercurrent of both nostalgia and progress. Alonso, now making his 22nd appearance at the “Temple of Speed,” reflected on how much has changed. “I remember the first couple of years in Monza, driving with no rear wing basically, made the car feel like it was floating on the straights, and it seemed like you were not totally in control of it. Now I would not say that it’s easy, but the cars are in control all the time. Obviously, now we have different devices that are making this place safer. That’s for me the biggest difference.”
With nine races left in the season after Monza, every point counts. The championship battle remains fierce, with Oscar Piastri leading the charge for McLaren, while Aston Martin, Mercedes, Ferrari, and others jockey for position in the midfield. For Alonso and his Aston Martin squad, the focus is on maximizing every opportunity, adapting to each circuit, and building on the momentum of a much-improved second half of the year.
The Italian Grand Prix weekend is underway, and while the outcome remains unwritten, one thing’s for sure: at Monza, the passion of the fans and the determination of the drivers will combine to create yet another unforgettable chapter in Formula 1 history. As the engines roar and the Tifosi fill the stands, all eyes are on the track—ready to see who will seize the moment in the heart of Italy.
