Pole, win and championship lead for Ilott in Monza

Callum Ilott regained the lead of the FIA Formula 2 Championship standings on the weekend as he took his fourth pole position and third victory of the year during the eighth round of the season in Monza, Italy.

ITALIAN GP

HIGHLIGHTS AND FACTS

• Callum secured his fourth pole position of the year and back-to-back F2 poles at Monza

• Making a strong start, Callum controlled the Feature Race until the pitstop

• At the pitstop, Callum's car stalled but he was able to restart and rejoin the race

• Callum made a fantastic recovery from P21, overtaking several drivers to finish in P6

• Starting the Sprint Race from P3, Callum drove another strong race and crossed the line in P2

• Callum was then later promoted to P1 after race winner Ticktum was excluded

• Callum is now back in the lead of the championship standings as the series moves onto Mugello, Italy, this weekend

CALLUM'S WEEKEND REVIEW

"In all honesty, I was a little surprised to be on pole as I felt my lap was good but I wasn't sure if it was going to be good enough for pole position. Luckily I was wrong and I was able to grab my fourth pole position of the year which was the perfect way to bounce back after a tough weekend in Belgium.

My start in the Feature Race was really strong and I was able to put myself into a strong position at the front early on. Even without having the DRS, I was able to keep Mick (Schumacher) behind me, Unfortunately, we had an issue at the stop and the car stalled. I didn't do anything differently with the clutch and throttle but sometimes these things happen.

After the stop, I was pretty annoyed at myself and I was on a mission to get back up to the front. I pulled off some good overtakes and my pace was really strong. I managed to bring it back for a P6 finish, which was a great result after the stall, and being last on track in P21, but I was still very frustrated as I knew I had the pace to win.

In Sunday's Sprint Race, I tried to manage the pace early on but then Dan (Ticktum) and Louis (Deletraz) started to push quite hard at the beginning. This meant I had to use a bit more of the tyres than I wanted at that stage. I still managed to have good pace towards the end, especially over Louis, so I was able to get past him into P2.

Taking the finish from P2, then inheriting the win, made for a fantastic Sunday and a great recovery from Saturday's race. It was almost a perfect weekend! It's great to be back in the lead of the championship and I'll be fighting hard to stay there. A huge thanks to the team for all of their efforts this weekend."

Image credit: Formula Motorsport Limited