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Lewis Hamilton got off the line slowly at the start of the Italian Grand Prix, but came back strong to win the race.

The Brit recorded his sixth win of the season, Sunday in Monza, and Mercedes' seventh 1-2 finish of the season.

Podium of the 2014 Italian Grand Prix (Photo: WRI2)

It was a stressful build up altogether for Hamilton, as mechanics had to change his front wing on the grid after it sustained damage.

"The launch sequence didn't engage properly for the formation lap and then again for the start," recalls the 2008 world champion.

Nico Rosberg takes the lead (Photo: WRI2)

"I tried to pull away as fast as possible, basically I just floored it and hoped for the best! Fortunately I didn't lose too many places.

"I'm really pleased with the win, it's feels like I have some momentum back as we go into the final races."

Rosberg locks up on lap 29 (Photo: WRI2)

Rosberg took the lead on lap one when Hamilton bogged down, but made a small mistake on lap 29 that allowed his teammate to get the lead back.

In the chase for the drivers' championship, the German now holds a 22 points advantage of Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton collects the checkered flag (Photo: WRI2)

Race results* - Italian Grand Prix (round 13 of 19)
1 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes W05) - 53 laps 1.19'10"236
2 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes W05) - 3"175
3 - Felipe Massa (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 25"026
4 - Valtteri Bottas (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 40"786
5 - Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 50"309
6 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 59"965
7 - Sergio Perez (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'02"518
8 - Jenson Button (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'03"063
9 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'03"535
10 - Kevin Magnussen (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'06"171 **
11 - Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'11"184
12 - Nico Hulkenberg (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'12"606
13 - Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'13"093
14 - Pastor Maldonado (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1 lap
15 - Adrian Sutil (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 1 lap
16 - Romain Grosjean (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1 lap
17 - Kamui Kobayashi (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1 lap
18 - Jules Bianchi (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1 lap
19 - Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 2 laps
20 - Marcus Ericsson (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 2 laps

Fastest lap of the race: 1'28"044 by Lewis Hamilton

Retirements
Fernando Alonso
Max Chilton

Fernando Alonso suffered an ultra-rare mechanical failure in Monza (Photo: WRI2)

Drivers' championship
1.Rosberg 238; 2.Hamilton 216; 3.Ricciardo 166; 4.Bottas 122; 5.Alonso 121; 6.Vettel 106; 7.Button 72; 8.Hulkenberg 70; 9.Massa 55; 10.Raikkonen 41; 11.Perez 39; 12.Magnussen 38; 13.Vergne 11; 14.Grosjean, Kvyat 8; 16.Bianchi 2.

Constructors' championship
1.Mercedes 454; 2.Red Bull-Renault 272; 3.Williams-Mercedes 177; 4.Ferrari 162; 5.McLaren-Mercedes 110; 6.Force India-Mercedes 109; 7.Toro Rosso-Renault 19; 8.Lotus-Renault 8; 9.Marussia-Ferrari 2.

*Unofficial results
**5-place penalty

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Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton enjoyed a rare trouble-free qualifying session, Saturday in Monza. He will head the grid, Sunday ahead of the Italian Grand Prix.

Trouble-free it was not for his teammate Nico Rosberg, though, whose running in the third practice session was hindered by a mechanical problem.

Nico Rosberg, Mercedes W05 (Photo: WRI2)

But the Mercedes crew fixed the car swiftly and had the German back on track in time for qualifying.

As Hamilton claimed his fifth pole position of the season aboard his Mercedes W05, which ran perfectly, Rosberg qualified second after a small mistake in the Ascari chicane.

Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes W05 (Photo: WRI2)

"It's a relief to have had a clean qualifying session, my first for quite a while!" said Hamilton.

"Big thanks to my guys in the garage, I'm very proud of the way they've worked this year and dealt with all our ups and downs, they've done a great job."

Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas (Photo: WRI2)

Despite their tangle at the start of the Belgian Grand Prix, Hamilton and Rosberg will be free to race Sunday.

"It's business as usual tomorrow," added the Brit. "We're free to race and I hope we get a strong result for the team, hopefully a one-two."

In total, Mercedes managed to put six cars in the top 6, as Mercedes-powered drivers locked out the first three rows of the starting grid.

Fernando Alonso, Ferrari F14-T (Photo: WRI2)

Qualifying results* - Italian Grand Prix (round 13 of 19)
1.Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes W05) - 1'24"109 - Q3
2.Nico Rosberg (Mercedes W05) - 1'24"383 - Q3
3.Valtteri Bottas (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 1'24"697 - Q3
4.Felipe Massa (Williams FW36-Mercedes) - 1'24"885 - Q3
5.Kevin Magnussen (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'25"314 - Q3
6.Jenson Button (McLaren MP4/29-Mercedes) - 1'25"379 - Q3
7.Fernando Alonso (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'25"430 - Q3
8.Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 1'25"436 - Q3
9.Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull RB10-Renault) - 1'25"709 - Q3
10.Sergio Perez (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'25"944 - Q3
11.Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari F14-T) - 1'26"110 - Q2
12.Jean-Eric Vergne (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'26"157 - Q2
13.Nico Hulkenberg (Force India VJM07-Mercedes) - 1'26"279 - Q2
14,Adrian Sutil (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 1'26"588 - Q2
15.Esteban Gutierrez (Sauber C33-Ferrari) - 1'26"692 - Q2
16.Pastor Maldonado (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'27"520 - Q1
17.Romain Grosjean (Lotus E22-Renault) - 1'27"632 - Q1
18.Kamui Kobayashi (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1'27"671 - Q1
19.Jules Bianchi (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1'27"738 - Q1
20.Max Chilton (Marussia MR03-Ferrari) - 1'28"247 - Q1
21.Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso STR9-Renault) - 1'26"070 - Q2 **
22.Marcus Ericsson (Caterham CT05-Renault) - 1'28"562 - Q1

*Unofficial results
**Ten-place grid penalty

From GMM

Ron Dennis says it is possible McLaren will line up with the same drivers in 2015.

Currently, Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button are waiting to know if they will spearhead the start of the Woking team's Honda era.

It is believed 34-year-old F1 veteran Button is the most likely to make way, as McLaren quite openly pursues champions of the calibre of Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso.

Kevin Magnussen (Photo: WRI2)

"I am a huge fan of both Kevin and Jenson," team supremo Dennis said at Monza. "Kevin has done an amazing job."

But he also said McLaren is looking closely at "who is available" elsewhere on the grid.

He would presumably love to reunite with his former protege Hamilton, who is at the centre of new rumours as Mercedes wonders if his pairing with Nico Rosberg is working for the German team.

Dennis said at Monza: "No one could have predicted the tension inside Mercedes-Benz, or imagine a range of scenarios that could see one of those drivers on the market by the end of the year.

Jenson Button, McLaren MP4-29 (Photo: WRI2)

"That does not mean we would automatically reach for that driver, or any other driver, in preference to what we have," he added.

"What it means is you are trying to understand who is available, and then you make a decision. It could be that decision is not to change."

McLaren has said it will announce its decision before the end of the season.

From GMM

Felipe Nasr could find his way into a Williams cockpit for 2015, according to the paddock grapevine at Monza.

Ironically, the Brazilian would presumably fill the seat at the British team currently occupied by his countryman Felipe Massa, whose name is eerily similar to the hopeful Williams reserve.

"It's a bit of an open secret that Felipe Nasr would be happy to have the seat, but I cannot see it just yet," said the commentator for the Finnish broadcaster MTV3, Oskari Saari.

"I think Williams will continue with the same drivers as this season," he added.

Nasr is managed by Steve Robertson, who also handles the career of Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen.

Felipe Nasr, Williams FW36 (Photo: WRI2)

Another Finnish journalist, Timo Pulkkinen, pointed out that Nasr may have another very lucrative ace up his sleeve.

"One rumour I heard yesterday is that Nasr has $18 million in sponsorship available.

"It may be that Williams is in need of that, but someone else would be happy to take it. Sauber, for example," he said.

"It may also be that Williams thinks Nasr is clearly weaker than Massa and would bring less points that could easily cost the team 18 million," Pulkkinen added.

From GMM

Tony Fernandes has broken his silence to reveal it is "a relief" to have left formula one.

The entrepreneur, best known for his Malaysian low-cost airline Airasia, recently sold the Leafield based Caterham team to mysterious Swiss-Middle Eastern investors led by Colin Kolles and Christijan Albers.

"Yeah. It's a relief," he told the Independent.

"There's nothing wrong in trying and failing," said 50-year-old Fernandes, who is now focusing instead on Airasia, his football club Queens Park Rangers, and second-tier teams in GP2 and Moto2.

He said he did learn things from F1, including "how not to do things".

Fernandes admitted not focusing hard enough on Caterham was a mistake, but he also said the naming dispute with Lotus was a "major blow".

"I never said it to anyone, but it left me feeling that F1 was very nasty and vindictive," he said.

Tony Fernandes (Photo: WRI2)

"Then Caterham didn't really progress, a lot of investments didn't come through and it started to get tough."

Fernandes also said Max Mosley's vision of keeping costs low for small teams never materialised, meaning "everyone is struggling" apart from the sport's grandee names.

"Every team talked about working together but it never happened. So you've got to put your hands up and say 'We're beat. It doesn't make sense any more'."

Fernandes said buying Queens Park Rangers from Bernie Ecclestone and seeing how football's commercial model works was also an eye-opener.

"Whether you're a top team or at the bottom, you get enough money to survive, and that's the major difference (between football and F1)," he said.

"There's a better dialogue (in football)," Fernandes continued. "There's a general understanding that we are in it together."

From GMM

Luca di Montezemolo was coy on Saturday as he played down swirling speculation about his future.

The long-time Ferrari president arrived at Monza for his traditional qualifying visit amid intense rumours that it will be his last.

Some reports suggest the charismatic Montezemolo, 67, is at loggerheads with fellow officials over policy, while others think he is poised to quit Ferrari to become the new chief of the Italian airline Alitalia.

"Alitalia?" Italian reporters quote Montezemolo as saying at Monza. "I hope to take one one of their planes tomorrow afternoon," he joked.

"The rumours about me? I have seen a great fuss in recent days, but I have found it excessive.

Luca di Montezemolo (Photo: WRI2)

"I'm here to work -- today, tomorrow, the next months.

"We are preparing a big event for Ferrari in Los Angeles in October, for the Paris motor show with our cars, and I gave my commitment to shareholders and to the people of Ferrari in March to stay another three years.

"If there is any news, I will be the first to tell you," Montezemolo insisted.

Meanwhile, in what looked like a photo opportunity, Montezemolo gave Ferrari's lead driver Fernando Alonso a long embrace in the Ferrari garage before qualifying.

It could have been a message to rival teams, like McLaren, who have been eyeing the Spaniard.

"He has a contract until 2016," said Montezemolo, "and wants the same thing I want: a more competitive car."

From GMM

F1's 'silly season' is bursting into life at Monza -- and almost every team in pitlane is playing ball.

That goes even for the sport's dominant Mercedes, and one of the highest-paid and most marketable stars, Lewis Hamilton.

Boss Toto Wolff had already lifted the lid by warning that if the Briton and his teammate Nico Rosberg do not fix up their broken relationship, Mercedes might have to change its lineup for 2015.

He repeated the warning on Friday.

Toto Wolff (Photo: WRI2)

"My statements were about what would happen if we wouldn't get on top of it and this is something obviously which is a very, very worst-case vision and I don't think that we were ever going to get there," said Wolff.

Even so, the warning is now made. Could it be connected to Hamilton's "frozen" contractual negotiations, and rumours at Monza that Mercedes is trying to drive down the value of the 2008 world champion's next deal?

Hamilton is also now linked with shock moves to McLaren, or even Ferrari.

Is that why Fernando Alonso on Thursday was being so complimentary when he looked back at their apparently poisonous pairing at McLaren in 2007?

Would the Spaniard prefer Hamilton as his 2015 teammate over the struggling Kimi Raikkonen?

"(At McLaren) it never was a problem with Lewis," Alonso said. "It didn't work because of the team. I never had a problem with Lewis and it's not a surprise today that we still have a good relationship."

That does appear a long shot, but it seems clear that Mercedes is looking at its current pairing and wondering if it makes sense for the image of the brand and to best capitalise on performance.

Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg (Photo: WRI2)

"If they (Rosberg and Hamilton) were more disciplined no one would be able to keep in touch with them," the visiting Flavio Briatore said at Monza on Friday.

"For me there has to always be a first driver and a second."

Even the academics agree, including Dr Paolo Aversa of London's Cass Business School who has concluded that pairings like Rosberg and Hamilton do not work.

"Toto Wolff now realises the internal conflict between Hamilton and Rosberg could lead to Daniel Ricciardo finishing between the two Silver Arrows teammates," he is quoted by The Times.

"It looks increasingly unlikely that both Hamilton and Rosberg will be lining up for Mercedes next season," he added.

"Their on and off track clashes are symptomatic of two roosters in the henhouse, which is statistically proven to decrease performance."

From GMM

Jean-Eric Vergne insists he has his "eyes open" to opportunities outside of formula one for 2015.

Now in his third campaign with the Red Bull junior team Toro Rosso, 24-year-old Frenchman Vergne will be moved over at the end of 2014 for the teen rookie Max Verstappen.

Dr Helmut Marko, the architect of the energy drink company's prolific and yet controversial driver programme, is unapologetic.

"Vergne has had three years at Toro Rosso, four years before that in the junior team and every opportunity -- everything a young driver needs," the always-blunt Austrian told Speed Week.

Vergne has been in F1 since 2012 (Photo: WRI2)

"Now he must find a way independently after 2014," Marko said. "We are not a pension fund."

Two weeks ago at Spa-Francorchamps, Vergne insisted he still sees his future in F1.

But he is now quoted as saying: "I am working in the background on the continuation of my racing career and exploring all possibilities.

"I know drivers who were too fixed on formula one and in the end were left empty-handed, driving nothing.

"I'm not stupid. I keep my eyes open," Vergne added.

Delphi Automotive PLC said it has lined up a contract to produce a vehicle-to-vehicle communication device that will warn drivers of possible accidents.

Mercedes-Benz plans to increase production capacity at its Alabama plant to 300,000 vehicles by the end of 2015, Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said Friday.

Mercedes-Benz plans to increase production capacity at its Alabama plant to 300,000 vehicles by the end of 2015, Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said Friday.

Mercedes plans to increase production capacity at its U.S. factory in Alabama to 300,000 vehicles by the end of 2015, Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said.

The signature element of Detroit's skyline -- GM's Renaissance Center headquarters -- is adorned with a massive GMC advertising wrap for the Detroit Lions' upcoming appearance on ESPN's 'Monday Night Football' broadcast.

Suspended Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon, known for dodging truck-sized NFL defenders, will try his hand at selling trucks -- and maybe some cars, too.