Starting grid for the 2014 Italian Grand Prix

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Lewis Hamilton ended his pole position drought in Italy yesterday after finishing fastest in qualifying ahead of teammate and championship rival Nico Rosberg.

However, with both Mercedes drivers starting on the front row of the grid, the entire F1 world will be watching to see if there is a repeat of their on-track clash at the Belgian Grand Prix two weeks ago.

Hamilton and Rosberg have both made assurances that there will be no contact, and the consequences would be severe, as made clear by the team in a meeting last week. In the heat of a championship battle though, anything could happen.

Just behind the Silver Arrows, Williams looks to be in contention for a big haul of points. Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa locked out the second row of the grid, and given the race pace of the FW36, both should be vying to complete the podium behind the Mercedes drivers today.

Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren and Force India will most probably make up the support cast for this one, but all will want to be in a position to capitalize on any drama at the front of the field should it strike.

You can watch today’s Italian Grand Prix live on NBCSN and Live Extra from 7.30am ET.

FROM THE STEWARDS’ OFFICE

  • Daniil Kvyat has been given a 10-place grid penalty for using a sixth internal combustion engine on his car, thus exceeding the limit of five for a season. He will start from 21st place.
  • Marcus Ericsson will start the race from the pit lane after ignoring double waved yellow flags during FP3 on Saturday.
  • Lotus has been fined €1,000 after Pastor Maldonado was found speeding in the pit lane.

STARTING GRID FOR THE 2014 ITALIAN GRAND PRIX

1. Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
2. Nico Rosberg Mercedes
3. Valtteri Bottas Williams
4. Felipe Massa Williams
5. Kevin Magnussen McLaren
6. Jenson Button McLaren
7. Fernando Alonso Ferrari
8. Sebastian Vettel Red Bull
9. Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull
10. Sergio Perez Force India
11. Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari
12. Jean-Eric Vergne Toro Rosso
13. Nico Hulkenberg Force India
14. Adrian Sutil Sauber
15. Esteban Gutierrez Sauber
16. Pastor Maldonado Lotus
17. Romain Grosjean Lotus
18. Kamui Kobayashi Caterham
19. Jules Bianchi Marussia
20. Max Chilton Marussia
21. Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso

PL. Marcus Ericsson Caterham

Motocross: Chase Sexton to miss Hangtown after midweek practice crash

Sexton Hangtown practice crash
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Chase Sexton announced on Instagram he will sit out this weekend’s Pro Motocross race at Hangtown in Rancho Cordova, California after a practice crash on Tuesday left him with a concussion.

Sexton’s crash on Tuesday happened during a test session at Fox Raceway.

“Bummed to make this post but I’ll be sitting out this weekend,” Sexton said. “As you guys saw I had a big one during qualifying at Pala, then another one on Tuesday this week that banged me up pretty good. Nothing broken just need a few days to get back to 100%.”

Despite his crash in the first qualification session in Pala, California, Sexton mounted up for both motos and finished second in each race behind his teammate Jett Lawrence, who was making his Motocross debut and won with a pair of first-place finishes. Sexton padded his SuperMotocross points’ lead over the injured Eli Tomac, who is still second in the combined Supercross and Motocross standings despite missing the SX finale at Salt Lake City and the outdoor opener with a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Sexton has an advantage of 78 points over Cooper Webb and cannot give up his SMX lead by missing this round.

At stake, however, is the risk of losing ground to Lawrence in the Pro Motocross championship. Sexton currently trails his teammate by six points and is liable to lose significant ground this weekend.

In addition to his concussion, Sexton has also been diagnosed with mononucleosis and the combination of the two conditions caused the team to make the difficult decision to keep him out of the lineup at Hangtown.

“I’m super-bummed to miss this weekend’s race,” Sexton said in a press release. “I feel like I rode well at Pala, and I was really looking forward to Hangtown because it’s a good track for me. Unfortunately, I was already pretty banged up from my qualifying crash on Saturday, and now with mono and Tuesday’s concussion on top of it, I want to do the right thing and hopefully be back on the track soon.”

A return date for Sexton has not yet been announced.

Other 2023 Injury News

450 riders
Eli Tomac, Achilles tendon | It was just a freak deal
Justin Barcia,
collarbone and shoulder
Jason Anderson, vertebrae
Christian Craig, elbow
Marvin Musquin, wrist
Malcolm Stewart, knee | Signs two-year extension
Aaron Plessinger, hip | returned at Salt Lake City
Dylan Ferrandis, concussion | Will not return until Motocross
Cooper Webb,
concussion | returned at Pala

250 riders
Nate Thrasher, hip
Stilez Robertson, leg
Cameron McAdoo, shoulder
Seth Hammaker, arm and wrist
Austin Forkner, knee | Injury isn’t the hardest part
Jo Shimoda, collarbone | returned at Atlanta
Jalek Swoll, arm | returned at Pala