Hamilton, starting from pole, got away badly due to some software issues and was passed by not only Rosberg but McLaren's Kevin Magnussen and Massa as well. However, Magnussen was soon passed for second place by Massa and then by Hamilton. By lap 10, Hamilton would overtake Massa and then chase after leader Rosberg.
Both Rosberg and Hamilton ran the same strategy, starting on the medium tires and pitting one lap apart on lap 24 and 25 respectively, to change to the hard tires. After the switch they were just 1.8 seconds apart, with Rosberg still in the lead. Then, on lap 29, Rosberg made a mistake at turn one and Hamilton took the lead, which he would hold until the end of the race. Rosberg eventually finished 3.1 seconds behind his teammate.
Fourth place went to Williams’ other driver Valtteri Bottas while fifth and sixth places went to Infiniti Red Bull Racing drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel respectively. Like their Mercedes counterparts, the two Red Bull drivers challenged each other through much of the race. Vettel was in front initially and defended well against Ricciardo. But on lap 41, at the same turn one chicane that upset Rosberg, a poor exit made by Vettel due to fading grip from his tires allowed Ricciardo to pull alongside on the run towards the second chicane. The Aussie ducked down the inside and went past the German.
Seventh place went to Force India’s Sergio Perez while eighth went to McLaren’s Jenson Button. Unfortunately for the home team, Ferrari, Kimi Räikkönen could only muster tenth but was promoted to ninth because of a penalty for Magnussen. The Dane received a five second penalty for running Bottas off the track earlier in the race. He took 10th in the official classification.
Meanwhile, Ferrari's other driver Fernando Alonso retired on lap 28 due to mechanical issues, the first such problem for the Spaniard since the 2010 Malaysian Grand Prix. Apart from Alonso, the only other retirement was Marussia's Max Chilton, who got stuck in the gravel trap on lap six.
Thanks to his latest win, his sixth this season, Lewis Hamilton’s points tally in the 2014 Drivers’ Championship moves up to 216 points. However, he still lags Nico Rosberg who sits on 238 points, with just six races to go. Rounding out the top three is Daniel Ricciardo on 166 points. In the Constructors’ Championship, Mercedes AMG sits on 454 points versus the 272 of Infiniti Red Bull Racing and 177 of Williams.
Below are top ten results of the 2014 Formula One Italian Grand Prix:
1) Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG
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2) Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG
3) Felipe Massa, Williams
4) Valtteri Bottas, Williams
5) Daniel Ricciardo, Infiniti Red Bull Racing
6) Sebastian Vettel, Infiniti Red Bull Racing
7) Sergio Perez, Force India
8) Jenson Button, McLaren
9) Kimi Räikkönen, Ferrari
10) Kevin Magnussen, McLaren
