1954 Italian GP

## Track Facts

* Name – Monza
* Location – Italy
* Corners – 8
* Laps – 80
* Base (Worst) Lap Time – 2:30.000
* Lap Record (Real Life) – 1:53.200 (Juan Manuel Fangio)
* Lap Record (F1R) – 1:46.150 (Roy Salvadori)
* Pit Lane Length – 40 seconds
* Fuel Consumption – Medium
* Tyre Wear – Low

## Qualifying 1

An incredibly exciting Q1 here at Monza, with Maserati eventually taking a 1-2 for Herrmann and Berger. Nuckey was the surprise package with a late lap in his Cooper to snag P3 from the Mercedes squadron led by Kling, Whitehead and Gerard - whilst championship leader Volonterio is down in 7th place after Q1.

A solid performance from Salvadori's Vanwall gets him incredibly close to the Mercedes, but in the end he can only manage a 1:45.0 lap. Hawthorn has his best qualifying performance of the season so far in 9th for Ferrari, from Lang's Maserati in 10th place.

Just outside the top 10 Mantovani is 11th after a great qualifying session from Ferrari who also had Taruffi in 22nd place too. Collins and Maglioli are 12th and 13th for Lancia, from the 4th Maserati of Farina. Menditeguy is 15th for Vanwall, from most of the other Cooper drivers including Schell (16th), Villoresi (17th), Helfrich (19th) and Manzon (21st).

Interspersed between the Cooper's are de Graffenried in 18th for Lancia and the sole Gordini of Pollet who rounds out the top 20 after a decent lap-time for him. Finishing off the grid are the HWM duo of Pilette and Flockhart, the Connaught pairing of Parnell and Fangio & the Klenk's of Brandon and Wacker who complete the line-up.

And the big surprise is that the line-up does not contain 2 Maserati drivers! Both Moss and Marimon fail to line-up, though Moss did set a lap just after the flag had fallen that the stewards ruled was too late. As usual 3 Connaught drivers, 2 Ferrari's of Godia and Musso, the Gordini trio of Trintignant, Ascari and Gonzalez & the HWM of Rosier. Finally the Vanwall duo of Behra and Whitehouse also fail to qualify for the race.

**Qualifying 1 Results**

## Qualifying 2

Maserati take a 1-2 here as Marimon and Moss do enough to put the Italian marque at the top of the standings. However celebrations in the Maserati garage are somewhat muted, as both of the aforementioned drivers missed Q1 and therefore the man next in line will claim pole position.

And that man is, incredibly, Villoresi in the Cooper! He is ahead of the first legitimate Maserati in the shape of Berger, from the next Cooper of Nuckey and the next Maserati of Farina. Following them are the lead Mercedes' of Volonterio and Whitehead, with Lang and Gerard rounding out the top 10 in Q2.

Herrmann will be the 4th Maserati in the race, but is down in a lowly 11th in Q2, from a stunning performance from Pollet's Gordini, a strong drive from Mantovani's Ferrari and then Salvadori sandwiched between the Lancia's of de Graffenried and Maglioli.

Kling is way down the order in 17th for Mercedes, with Hawthorn, Menditeguy and Collins for company on the outskirts of the top 20. A solid performance from Parnell's Connaught will give the team hope, whilst Taruffi completes his return in 22nd ahead of a plethora of Cooper cars surrounding Fangio's Connaught.

Completing the Q2 competitors are Pilette's HWM, Wacker's Klenk and Behra's Vanwall - though the latter was just running an extended test session after he missed Q1 and thus is not eligible for the race.

**Qualifying 2 Results**

## Overall Qualifying Results

And so after we discount the DNQ'd Maserati drivers it is Villoresi on pole for Cooper, with Nuckey 3rd for the British marque as they sandwich Berger who has been consistently quick all weekend long.

Following them comes the Q1 pole-sitter Herrmann, who didn't manage to improve his time in Q2 and his team-mate Farina. Mercedes will be disappointed to have only qualified 6th and 7th with Volonterio and Whitehead, but at least relieved to have one Maserati behind them in the shape of Lang. Gerard is next up in 9th place.

A sterling effort in Q2 sees Pollet line his Gordini up in an impressive 10th place, as he just pips Mantovani's Ferrari to that elusive top 10 spot. Kling failed to improve on his Q1 time and thus starts down in 12th place, with de Graffenried, Salvadori and Maglioli for company.

Hawthorn was another who didn't manage to better his Q1 lap-time, but this didn't ultimately affect his starting position of 16th, ahead of another who relied on his Q1 time - Collins in the Lancia. Rounding out the top 20 are Menditeguy, Schell - who also didn't beat his Q1 lap-time, and Parnell in the Connaught, who starts his car in the top 20 for the 2nd race running!

Also lining up for the start at the back of the grid are Helfrich (who also did better in Q1), the returning Taruffi, Fangio's Connaught, Manzon's Cooper (also faster in Q1, as Cooper had a dire Q2!), Pilette's HWM and the Klenk of Wacker.

The biggest story here perhaps though are those that have not qualified for the race; namely Marimon and Moss for Maserati, Flockhart's HWM, Brandon's Klenk and Behra's Vanwall.

## Race Commentary

*Lap 1* - And we are GO in Monza! Villoresi gets a sweet start off the line and pulls away from the pack as chaos ensues for those behind him - Berger and Nuckey go wheel to wheel at Curva Grande, AND THEY TOUCH! Both are forced off the track to allow Herrmann into 2nd place. Volonterio is up to 3rd place, as Farina gets it all wrong at Lesmo 1 and causes a few drivers to take evasive action!

The Italian gets his Maserati back on track, but finds himself overtaken by Mantovani, de Graffenried and Lang - but no-one else!?! Amazingly only a few drivers make it past, as further back there has been utter carnage at Curva Grande.

A great start for Maglioli had put the Lancia driver inside the top 10, but as he went into Curva Grande he locked his brakes and lost control of the car in the middle of the track - meaning that those behind have to back right out of it to avoid hitting the Lancia. Taking particular advantage of this are Mantovani & de Graffenried who head up the road to take the fight to those at the front.

However, not everyone is quite so lucky - as Manzon and Schell, who are both preoccupied with their own inter-team battle, clash they manage to wipe out Maglioli and really shake up the order! Kling is 8th, from Collins who is up to 9th from Gerard in 10th place. Salvadori moves into 11th place, from the recovering Berger in 12th.

Whitehead loses out as he drops to 13th ahead of Pollet, the unfortunate Nuckey in 15th, Taruffi up to 16th, Helfrich into 17th, Hawthorn down to 18th, Menditeguy down in 19th and we still have a Connaught in the top 20 - though it is Fangio now in this place, as Parnell has dropped down to 21st.

Pilette and Wacker are both way down the field on pure pace, but at least they haven't retired like Maglioli, Schell and Manzon now have.

*Lap 2* - The man on the move this lap is Collins in the Lancia, who - not content with being inside the top 10 - puts a great move on Kling at Curva Grande. Both of them then manage to get up the inside of a struggling Farina, who still hasn't got his tyres back up to temperature yet, and Lang also falls prey to them at Sud 1, whilst de Graffenried makes a small error at Sud 2 that promotes the pair of them into 5th and 6th place!!!

Lang's mistake at Sud 1 causes him to leave the track at Sud 2 and allows not only Farina through to 8th but also Pollet into 9th place - the Gordini driver rediscovers his pace from qualifying with passes on Whitehead, Berger, Salvadori and Gerard! Helfrich also overtakes Taruffi on this lap.

*Lap 3* - The established order is being well and truly shaken up so far this race, as Mantovani takes championship leader Volonterio at Sud 1. Kling runs wide at Curva Grande on this lap, allowing both de Graffenried and Farina through - though the Italian loses a position to Lang on this lap too.

And as the Mercedes driver recovers back onto the track he comes right out into Pollet's path, causing the Gordini driver to swerve and letting through Gerard and Salvadori.

Helfrich and Taruffi are slipstreaming effectively, and pass both Nuckey and Whitehead on the run down to del Vialone. Helfrich also capitalises on the chaos with Kling to pass Berger, Pollet & Salvadori.

*Lap 4* - More thrills and spills on track, as de Graffenried tries to pass Collins at Lesmo 2 and causes both Lancia's to veer off track. As a result they both drop down the order behind Lang, Farina and Gerard - and Farina manages to recover from his previous error to get back past Lang too.

Meanwhile a big incident at Vialone as Helfrich pushes too hard, and gets the back end of his Cooper out - he touches wheels with Salvadori's Vanwall, and both miss their braking point for Sud 1 as a result. Pollet gets suckered into this and also fails to slow down in time! As such Berger, Taruffi and Whitehead all move up. Salvadori recovers best and is now in 14th place ahead of Nuckey, Helfrich and the luckless Pollet.

*Lap 5* - Villoresi manages to increase his lead at the front to over 2 seconds. Berger is just as quick, though much further down the order, as he overtakes Kling at della Roggia with a better exit from Curva Grande, de Graffenried at Lesmo 2 and then Collins at Sud 1 - though the pass on the latter driver compromises Collins' exit, and allows de Graffenried to pass his team-mate.

Whitehead has been stuck behind Taruffi for a while now, and finally manages to do something about this with a well-executed overtake using his superior speed at Serraglio to complete the move.

Nuckey is really struggling with the handling on his car, and concedes places to both Helfrich and Pollet - that Gordini still looks pacey though and Pollet takes Helfrich too, to do a double-pass on the Cooper's in 1 lap!

*Lap 6* - Villoresi slides wide at Lesmo 1! He gets back on track, but is unable to prevent Herrmann darting past him to take the lead for Maserati. The Cooper driver is able to block Mantovani though and ensure he at least keeps 2nd place.

De Graffenried is another to make an error on this lap, as he gets the tail of his car out at Sud 1 and has a tank-slapper there that promotes Collins, Kling and Whitehead. And Whitehead goes on to drive around the outside of Kling at Sud 2!

Helfrich takes Pollet at Lesmo 1, but to make the pass he forces the Gordini wide - and that allows Nuckey to get the drive on both of them down to Vialone. The Cooper driver then dives up the inside of Salvadori at Sud 1 to take another place.

*Lap 7* - The battle at the front intensifies, as Herrmann blocks Villoresi - and a moment of lapsed concentration allows Volonterio to dart past Mantovani at Curva Grande. Lang re-passes Farina to move into the points here, whilst both Whitehead and de Graffenried are on the move here as they both pass Berger, Collins and Kling.

*Lap 8* - Mantovani doesn't take the pass from Volonterio lying down, and manages to line up the Mercedes driver at Lesmo 1 to claim 3rd place - and then goes on to overtake Villoresi for 2nd place with a hefty pass at Sud 1.

De Graffenried takes Whitehead on this lap, as the Lancia driver continues to battle his way up the order. Meanwhile further back Hawthorn gets involved with a pass on Pollet - and then both get lucky as Helfrich slides wide at Sud 2 to allow both through.

*Lap 9* - Villoresi gets his race back on track, with a pass on Mantovani at Lesmo 1, followed by overtaking Herrmann with a sublime pass at Vialone that the Maserati driver simply did not see coming! Berger passes Whitehead on this lap at Sud 1, to claim 9th place for Maserati.

*Lap 10* - Villoresi loses ground with a bad moment at Curva Grande, and finds himself unable to defend against Herrmann on the run down to Lesmo 1, and so loses the lead. Meanwhile Berger continues his good run of form, as he takes de Graffenried at Lesmo 2 before putting a strong move on Gerard at Sud 1, which allows the Lancia following Berger to pass the Mercedes too!

Collins gets some revenge for Lancia, as he overtakes Whitehead on this lap. Further back Helfrich continues to fight, as he passes both Pollet and Hawthorn this time around.

*Lap 11* - An action-packed lap on track here! Gerard re-passes de Graffenried straight away at Curva Grande, and in a double whammy for Mercedes vs Lancia Whitehead comfortably overtakes Collins as well! It's not all smooth sailing for Mercedes though, as Kling loses a place to Taruffi this time around - and things get even better for Ferrari with Hawthorn getting the better of Helfrich too on this lap.

*Lap 12* - Herrmann spins!!! The Maserati driver gets it all crossed-up at Lesmo 2 and slides right off track! Villoresi re-takes the lead, Volonterio is back up to 2nd (which is potentially crucial for the championship) and Lang is into 3rd place.

Berger's renaissance continues as he overtakes Farina on the run down to Sud 1. Nuckey has a bad lap, losing places to Kling and Salvadori at Lesmo 2 and Sud 2 respectively.

*Lap 13* - And Villoresi now has a spin at Lesmo 2 himself!!! The Cooper driver drops behind Volonterio, but the Mercedes driver's lead is short-lived as at Sud 1 Lang capitalises to move into 1st place! Herrmann also passes Villoresi to take the final podium position now.

De Graffenried takes Gerard here for 8th place as the Lancia resistance continues with them holding station with at least one driver inside the top 10. Nuckey has a positive lap for the 1st time in a while, as he executes overtakes on Salvadori and - most impressively - Kling, who is going really quite slowly compared to his Mercedes team-mates.

*Lap 14* - Herrmann regains his place at the front of the race! Volonterio challenges Lang for the lead, and the Swiss ultimately causes them both to have a poor exit from Lesmo 2, which Herrmann takes advantage of to complete both passes before the Vialone curve.

*Lap 15* - Villoresi's race is starting to go downhill quickly, as Mantovani gets the better of him at Lesmo 1, before Berger follows him through at the 2nd Lesmo corner. De Graffenried continues Lancia's bid for points, as he overtakes Farina at Sud 2.

Nuckey is also moving up, as he passes both Taruffi and Collins on this lap! Salvadori is the latest driver to demote Kling, who is now down in a shocking 15th place!!!

*Lap 16* - A great lap for Herrmann as he extends his lead and takes the fastest lap of the race too! Villoresi begins his recovery as he takes Berger at Sud 1, and meanwhile Collins has a moment at Vialone, which allows Taruffi through and then allows Salvadori to capitalise at Sud 2 with a dive up the inside to claim the place.

*Lap 17* - Finally the race settles down into some kind of rhythm, though there are still a variety of battles going on all the way down the field.

*Lap 18* - Another fastest lap for Herrmann, as he races away at the front! Otherwise several overtaking attempts happen, but none are successful - Hawthorn does close the gap to Kling to just 1 second now though!

*Lap 19* - Lang and Volonterio both close the gap to Herrmann, who makes a small error at Sud 2 to allow the field to draw nearer to him. Meanwhile further back Collins is back on the attack path, with a pass on Taruffi at Lesmo 1 before moving into 12th place past Salvadori at Sud 1.

Kling's race is really going from bad to worse, as now even Hawthorn forces his way past the slow-moving Mercedes. He has a 9 second advantage over Helfrich and Pollet, but one wonders whether that gap will also start to come down now!

Finally fuel consumption was always going to be a hot topic here, and we see the 1st victim in the shape of Pilette. He pulls over at Lesmo 2 with nothing left in the tank to become the 4th retirement of the race.

*Lap 20* - Possibly fearing the fuel consumption issues, several drivers come into the pits to refuel, including Volonterio, Mantovani, de Graffenried, Taruffi and Parnell. Meanwhile attention is on the race leaders, as Lang passes Herrmann at Sud 1 with real aplomb. Villoresi is now 3rd from Berger in 4th, Farina 5th, Gerard 6th, Whitehead 7th, Nuckey 8th, Collins 9th and Salvadori up to 10th place.

Hawthorn is into 11th place, from Kling in 12th, Helfrich 13th still around 9 seconds down on the Mercedes and Pollet 14th. Volonterio comes out of the pits in 15th place, just ahead of Menditeguy in 16th. Mantovani, de Graffenried and Taruffi are out in that order ahead of Fangio in 20th and Parnell who emerges in 21st position still.

*Lap 21* - Nuckey takes 7th from Whitehead, as he looks fired up to make his way back to the points-paying positions again. Helfrich pits on this lap, coming out comfortably behind Taruffi and ahead of Fangio in 19th place.

*Lap 22* - Herrmann pits on this lap, with a really good stop that puts him out some 7 seconds up the road from Volonterio, though right behind Pollet who is yet to pit for Gordini. Collins also comes in on this lap, with a decent stop that ensures he emerges ahead of Taruffi but behind team-mate de Graffenried.

*Lap 23* - Lang now comes into the pits from the lead of the race, he also has a good stop and manages to pull out a 5 second lead over Herrmann and crucially he has Pollet in between them. Villoresi is now into the lead, from Berger in 2nd, Farina in 3rd, Gerard in 4th, Nuckey now up to 5th, Whitehead 6th and Hawthorn now up in 7th place after the Ferrari driver dives up the inside of Salvadori at Lesmo 2. Kling is 9th with Lang into 10th place despite having pitted already.

*Lap 24* - Whitehead comes into the pits, and an average stop means he comes out in 14th place behind Herrmann, Volonterio, Menditeguy who is certainly out of sync now, and even Mantovani too as the Mercedes driver plummets down the order.

*Lap 25* - A more settled lap this time around - Hawthorn does close the gap on Nuckey to around 7 seconds though.

*Lap 26* - Nuckey pits this lap, coming out just behind Whitehead and ahead of de Graffenried, which moves Hawthorn into the top 5 for Ferrari. Meanwhile Volonterio draws right up to the back of Herrmann and is putting some serious pressure on the Maserati driver now.

*Lap 27* - Several drivers pit on this lap, including Villoresi from the lead and Farina from 3rd place. The Cooper driver has an average stop, but such has been his pace that he comes out comfortably ahead of Herrmann & Volonterio in 6th place - and just 2 seconds down on Lang. With Hawthorn and Pollet also pitting that means that Berger now holds the race lead, from Gerard in 2nd, Salvadori now in 3rd from Kling in 4th and Lang 5th.

Volonterio manages to put a move on Herrmann this lap to claim 7th place, Farina emerges in 9th from Menditeguy who rounds out the top 10. Mantovani, Whitehead, Nuckey and de Graffenried are next up, with Hawthorn out just behind them in 15th place. Collins and Taruffi follow them, with Pollet pitting and coming out in 18th - though comfortably ahead of Helfrich and Fangio who complete the top 20.

*Lap 28* - Both Berger and Gerard pit on this lap, which promotes Salvadori to the lead of the race for Vanwall! Kling is now into 2nd place, from Lang, Villoresi, Volonterio and Herrmann. Berger emerges in 7th place after a solid stop, with Farina, Menditeguy, Mantovani and Whitehead following. Gerard comes out in a disappointing 12th place after a slow-ish stop for the Mercedes.

De Graffenried passes Nuckey on this lap as well, though he has some 6 seconds to make up on Gerard if he is to catch those competing for the top 10.

*Lap 29* - SALVADORI RETIRES!!! The former race-winner pulls over to the side of the road - out of fuel! His mechanics look absolutely gutted that they wont be able to help him to a good result today. Kling now leads the race, and appears to be angling for a 1 stopper as things stand!

Mantovani passes Menditeguy for what is now 8th place, whilst Gerard gets the better of Whitehead for 10th position. De Graffenried has the gap down to just 2 seconds to the pair of them now, as the Lancia onslaught continues! Futher back Fangio also pulls off the circuit, caught out by the fuel consumption too - which will promote Parnell to 19th eventually and Wacker to the top 20 for Klenk if he can keep his battered and bruised car moving!

*Lap 30* - Volonterio passes Villoresi to regain a podium place with a slick move at Lesmo 1, meanwhile Taruffi takes the fight to Collins and executes a strong pass up the inside at Sud 1 for 15th place.

*Lap 31* - De Graffenried manages to pass Whitehead with a great slipstreaming move after he gets a better exit from Vialone. Menditeguy is pressuring Mantovani still, but finds himself blocked off at Sud 2 by the Ferrari.

*Lap 32* - A much quieter lap here, as Kling enjoys an 11 second advantage at the front - and if he is on a 1 stopper he has the same amount of stops to do as everyone else! Meanwhile there are nervous looks in some garages and frantic calculations to see if their drivers are likely to run out of fuel any time soon!!!

*Lap 33* - Lang is being caught by Volonterio for 2nd place, whilst Herrmann is putting pressure on Villoresi for 3rd.

*Lap 34* - Another lap where Volonterio catches Lang, and he is now just 3 seconds down on his rival.

*Lap 35* - Kling pits from the lead and drops down to 13th place behind de Graffenried, who loses out to both Whitehead and Nuckey on this lap. Wacker pits too, but doesn't lose any ground as the man in last place - at least he fixes his car at last though!

*Lap 36* - Herrmann gains on Villoresi again, but can find no way past. Meanwhile Volonterio passes Lang with a well-executed move at Lesmo 1.

*Lap 37* - Villoresi gains on the leading pair with a lap time in the 1:43s that takes around 3 seconds out of them and eases the pressure that Herrmann had been applying on the Cooper driver. And we lose the final Vanwall, as Menditeguy retires out of fuel some way away from the pit-lane.

*Lap 38* - Mantovani, de Graffenried and Nuckey all look incredibly quick on this lap and gain a lot of ground. Villoresi again gains on the leaders and is now just 5 seconds behind them. Taruffi also passes Collins on this lap.

*Lap 39* - Helfrich gets the better of Pollet on this lap, whilst Villoresi takes the gap to the leaders down to 2 seconds but all attention is on the TRIPLE RETIREMENTS this lap! First of all Parnell's race comes to an end as he retires with an empty tank of fuel at Sud 2, though at least he passes Menditeguy to claim what is now 18th place.

Following that we see the end of de Graffenried and Mantovani, as two top 10 challengers end their respective races at the side of the road with no more fuel in their engines.

*Lap 40* - Volonterio is the latest driver to pit from the lead, emerging in 10th place some 8 seconds behind Kling. Taruffi also pits, and comes out behind both Helfrich and Pollet.

Berger gains heavily on Herrmann here, and is now just 1.5 seconds behind. Gerard also takes 3 seconds off Farina on this lap.

*Lap 41* - And we now lose Helfrich from the race, as he runs out of fuel too - the Cooper mechanics now look significantly more nervous than before! Meanwhile Whitehead takes Nuckey for 7th place as things go from bad to worse for Cooper.

Further back Collins takes 11th from Hawthorn and is now just 4 seconds down on Volonterio, who looks like he might be the man to beat today if he can keep up his pace and close down Kling who is 6.9 seconds ahead now.

*Lap 42* - Villoresi gets the better of Lang and reclaims the lead of the race for Cooper! Cheers all around the Cooper mechanics, though there are still nervous looks between several of them since Helfrich's retirement.

Meanwhile Hawthorn is really pressuring Collins to regain his position, and Nuckey is also pushing Whitehead to get his place back too.

*Lap 43* - Herrmann takes a huge chunk out of both the leaders, as he gains over 4 seconds in just 1 lap and is now only 6 seconds behind them! Meanwhile Nuckey gets the better of Whitehead to reclaim 7th place at the 1st Lesmo turn.

*Lap 44* - Lang re-takes the lead!!! A great slipstreaming manoeuvre on Villoresi moves him into 1st place at Curva Grande. Both Nuckey and Whitehead are closing in on Gerard in 6th, but there's still around 10 seconds to Farina in 5th position.

*Lap 45* - Herrmann closes the gap to the leaders to only 2 seconds after another strong lap, whilst Villoresi loses ground to Lang. Gerard now has less than 1.5 seconds between him, Nuckey and Whitehead, whilst Hawthorn continues to pressure Collins for 11th position.

*Lap 46* - Herrmann - and especially Villoresi who is only the second man to break the the 1:43 barrier - gain on the leader this time around. However on this lap we finally see Hawthorn regain 11th place as he executes a clinical move on Collins at Sud 1 that claims the place for him.

*Lap 47* - Hawthorn's lead lasts a matter of seconds, as Collins gets a better exit from Sud 2 and takes the inside line at Grande to reclaim his previous place. Meanwhile Nuckey continues to pressure Gerard for 6th place, which plays into the hands of Farina who is now around 11 seconds up the road in the final points-paying position.

*Lap 48* - Villoresi dives up the inside of Lang at Sud 1, but runs wide and allows the Maserati to keep the place. Otherwise positions stay the same in a relatively quiet lap - though Wacker is now inside the top 20 thanks to all the retirements!

*Lap 49* - Herrmann sets the new fastest lap of the race! He is clearly very low on fuel right now…meanwhile Whitehead is exerting pressure over Nuckey and almost gets past at Sud 2 before the Cooper driver shuts the door.

*Lap 50* - Herrmann is indeed low on fuel and so…he pits! And he comes out level with Volonterio, who manages to just get his car ahead into Curva Grande to ensure that it is he who claims 9th place from the Maserati. It's worth noting that both are only around 2 seconds down on Kling now in the fight for the ultimate race lead!

*Lap 51* - Whitehead finally finds a way past Nuckey, as he sells him a dummy into Lesmo 1 before diving back on the inside at Lesmo 2 to take the place! Meanwhile Collins pits from 11th place and comes out behind Pollet, but still just ahead of Taruffi's Ferrari.

*Lap 52* - Villoresi gains on Lang in the lead, that Cooper certainly seems quick at the moment! Nuckey is also incredibly speedy at the moment - which is either brilliant or concerning for Cooper, depending on how you look at it! Also on this lap Herrmann passes Volonterio for what will eventually be the battle for 2nd place, and the Maserati driver is now just 0.2 seconds down on Kling!

Whitehead pits on this lap too, coming out in 11th place with a big gap between Hawthorn and Pollet on either side.

*Lap 53* - Disaster for Cooper - they lose Villoresi! He is forced to pull off to the side of the road at Sud 1 with no more fuel left in the tank!!! Also retiring on this lap is Pollet, who can go no further and pulls off the track just after Curva Grande.

Cooper are relieved to get Nuckey into the pits, but a relatively slow stop ensues and he comes out in what is now 9th place just ahead of Whitehead, who must be gutted to have the Cooper in front of him again!

Volonterio also passes Herrmann on this lap - and thanks to their in-fighting Kling retains the de-facto lead of race for at least another lap. To recap the current positions Lang now leads comfortably from Berger in 2nd and Farina 3rd in a Maserati podium lock-out; Gerard, Kling and Volonterio sit in places 4th to 6th from Herrmann 7th, Hawthorn 8th, Nuckey 9th and Whitehead 10th. Collins is 11th with Taruffi 12th, and Wacker will eventually gain 13th if he can keep going!

*Lap 54* - Berger gains some ground on Lang here, but still has a deficit of around 16 seconds to his team-mate. Meanwhile Farina pits from 3rd and comes out in 7th place to keep the all Maserati-Mercedes top 7 intact. Hawthorn also pits and drops down behind everyone bar Wacker, to elevate Collins into the top 10 for Lancia.

*Lap 55* - Whitehead passes Nuckey on this lap, making it a top 8 for Mercedes and Maserati. Meanwhile Taruffi puts smiles back on Ferrari faces as he gets the better of Collins' Lancia at Sud 2.

*Lap 56* - Both Berger and Gerard pit from 2nd and 3rd respectively - very similar pit-stops see them come out in 5th for Berger and 7th for Gerard with only Farina in between them. At the same time there is hope for those not in the top 2 teams, as Nuckey manages to make his braking point after a very late dive up the inside of Whitehead at Lesmo 1 to regain 8th place.

*Lap 57* - Lang pits from the lead…and comes out in 1st place still! He looks a strong favourite to take the win with a 10.6 second lead over Kling in 2nd place. Further back Whitehead reclaims 8th place from Nuckey with a strong pass at Sud 1.

*Lap 58* - Nuckey has a go at Whitehead, but it doesn't quite come off and he has to settle back behind the Mercedes to await another opportunity. Volonterio is right behind Kling, and Berger is pressuring Herrmann - though neither has managed to do anything about it as yet.

*Lap 59* - Gerard is right on the back of Farina, but can find no way past. Volonterio has a similar issue with Kling, despite showing his nose up the inside at Lesmo 1.

*Lap 60* - Kling brings the gap under 10 seconds to Lang, whilst Volonterio takes his 3rd stop of the race and comes out in 9th place behind the Whitehead vs Nuckey fight. Taruffi also pits for a 3rd time to elevate both Collins and Hawthorn ahead of the Italian driver.

*Lap 61* - Volonterio is pressuring Nuckey, but has no luck as yet. Meanwhile Kling has the gap at the front down to 8 seconds, but it looks like he's starting to struggle on those tyres…

*Lap 62* - We lose another driver from the race on this lap…

Fred Wacker bids farewell as he pulls off onto the grass, though he may count himself fortunate to finish as high as he does in 15th place! Otherwise the main action is Herrrmann taking the gap to Kling down to less than a second.

*Lap 63* - Down to 12 runners - and whether it's tyres or the amount of his opponents running out of fuel is unclear, but either way Kling elects to come in for his 2nd stop on this lap. He comes out behind 7th place, just a single second ahead of Nuckey's Cooper who looks a dead cert for "best of the rest" today!

*Lap 64* - Berger halves Herrmann's advantage over him, but even he closes the remaining 3 seconds Lang is now a further 13 seconds up the road! Nuckey is pressuring Kling for 7th place - it may not be worth points, but it would be a great achievement for the Cooper driver to be able to take the scalp of the highly-rated German!

*Lap 65* - Herrmann takes 3 seconds out of Lang on this lap, as he narrows the gap to just 9 seconds at the front. Whitehead is also gaining ground as he closes to within 6 seconds of Gerard, though he may want to watch out for Nuckey as the Cooper #1 driver gets the better of Kling with a clinical pass at Lesmo 1 that gives the Mercedes driver no chance of responding here.

*Lap 66* - Another sub 1:43 lap for Herrmann closes the gap to 6 seconds at the front, though Berger is struggling to keep up at this pace! Nuckey also takes 2 seconds off Whitehead on this lap, but still has another 3 seconds or so to gain.

*Lap 67* - Lang puts in a much better lap, as Herrmann over-cooks it and drops 3 seconds back on his team-mate. And we said that Whitehead might need to watch out for Nuckey, and we were right! The Cooper driver executes a neat switchback at Lesmo 2 to claim 6th place from the Mercedes driver - he is now just 6 seconds off a points-paying position!!!

*Lap 68* - Herrmann regains 2 of the seconds he lost last lap, whilst Gerard responds to the Cooper pressure by taking 3 seconds out of Farina ahead of him and pulling away from Nuckey in the process, who immediately finds himself on the defensive and ultimately unable to do anything about Whitehead who passes him on the run down to Vialone.

*Lap 69* - Another 2 seconds to Herrmann who has the gap down to around 7 seconds at the front, whilst Volonterio begins to menace team-mate Kling as he is only 1 second behind him now!

*Lap 70* - Lang responds to Herrmann's pressure to move back to 9 seconds ahead, whilst defending champion Gerard starts to take chunks out of Farina's lead on him. Nuckey recoups himself, and slices 2 seconds out of Whitehead's advantage on this lap.

*Lap 71* - Gerard grabs another 3 seconds from Farina to pull to within 5.5 seconds of the 4th placed Maserati.

*Lap 72* - // - Herrmann gets the gap back down to 7.5 seconds or so, with what is almost the fastest lap of the race! Meanwhile Gerard is only 3 seconds down on Farina after another strong lap. Nuckey re-takes Whitehead here; the Mercedes driver has a poor exit from Lesmo 2, and as a result the Cooper driver finds a way through at Vialone!

*Lap 73* - Berger takes 3 seconds out of Herrmann - are we seeing the end of the German's tilt for the race win here? Behind them Gerard closes to within a second of Farina, as he is clearly keen to at least beat one of the 4 Maseratis here.

Kling is gaining ground on Whitehead slowly but surely as he seeks to move himself into 7th place, but his quarry is focused on what's in front as he is only 0.8 seconds behind Nuckey now.

*Lap 74* - Another sub 1:43 for Herrmann closes the gap, but only slightly - it will take something special for him to gain 8.9 seconds on Lang in the remaining laps. However Gerard is much closer, as he is now only 0.6 seconds down on Farina!

Kling is only a single second behind Whitehead, who makes an error that allows Nuckey to scamper away some 3-4 seconds up the road.

*Lap 75* - Lang responds with his own 1:42 lap, and as Herrmann goes slightly wide at Lesmo 1 that is likely to put the win out of his reach. He should probably now worry more about Berger being only 5 seconds behind him now…

Finally Gerard makes the pass on Farina, with a stunning lap that leaves the Italian unable to defend at all! However that's all Gerard is likely to achieve, given the 34 second gap to Berger in 3rd place. Behind them Nuckey makes a mistake at Sud 1 and before he can get back on track both Whitehead and Kling make their way through - with Volonterio now not far behind either.

*Lap 76* - Berger is putting the pressure on Herrmann, as he closes to within 3 seconds of his adversary. Meanwhile Nuckey will simply not lie down!!! The Brit passes Kling at Lesmo 1, and gets such good drive out of the 2nd Lesmo that he is already alongside Whitehead by the time they reach Vialone - before taking the inside line at Sud 1 to reclaim 6th place!

It's worth noting that Hawthorn takes a few seconds out of Collins here, and is now just 3.7 seconds outside the top 10.

*Lap 77* - Herrmann stamps his authority over Berger with a lap-time that increases the gap back to 5 seconds and leaves little doubt over who it is that will take 2nd place today. Kling shows his nose inside of Whitehead's rear wheel at Sud 1, but he is forced to brake hard and get out of it - which allows Volonterio to move to within 1.5 seconds at the line!

It's worth noting that Taruffi is gaining on both Collins and Hawthorn, but at some 36 seconds behind it is almost certainly too little too late.

*Lap 78* - Farina tries to gain on Gerard and gets the gap back to 2.2 seconds - though it's not a particularly convincing gain and the Mercedes looks pretty comfortable in 4th place. Kling is now 0.1 seconds down on Whitehead, with Volonterio 1.6 seconds further back.

Hawthorn takes the gap to Collins back down under 5 seconds, though again it's not particularly threatening to the Lancia driver…

*Lap 79* - …who solidifies his hold on a top 10 place with a 1:44 lap-time, which increases the gap to around 8 seconds. Volonterio looks most menacing right now, as the Swiss championship leader pulls to within 1 second of Kling.

*Lap 80* - Reports are reaching the pits that 2 cars are out of fuel on the final lap!!! Unbelievable scenes here, as spectators and mechanics alike crane their necks to see who will make it to the finish…

…

…

LANG WINS!!! The Maserati driver takes his 1st win of the season AND takes the fastest lap of the race too, followed by team-mate Herrmann in 2nd place who really moves himself into championship contention now, with only 1 race remaining. The podium is indeed a Maserati lock-out, with Berger in 3rd place, who finally scores his 1st points of the season!

It seems to take an age for 4th place to come across the line - and when he does finally finish it's a big relief for the Mercedes mechanics to see Gerard come home ahead of Farina, who takes the final points place for Maserati.

Cooper wait expectantly for Nuckey, but are disconcerted to see Whitehead cross the line - this is followed by momentary excitement as Volonterio gets a run on Kling out of Sud 2, and makes it stick to claim 7th place today.

Nuckey does get credited with 9th position despite not finishing the race, with Collins rounding out the top 10 and Hawthorn the only Ferrari to finish as Taruffi pulls up with no fuel left in the tank on his final lap of the race.