Deutsche Welle -- Lewis Hamilton has won the Italian Grand Prix, despite a difficult start at F1's fastest track. Championship rival and teammate Nico Rosberg finished second, while Mercedes motors nearly monopolized the points.
Mercedes-powered drivers Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg and Felipe Massa locked out Monza's podium on Sunday, with Mercedes-engined cars claiming seven of the ten points-paying positions in Italy.
Formel 1 Grand Prix Italien in Monza
Lewis Hamilton's race win in Italy did not go according to script. The 2008 champion got away poorly from pole position and reached turn 1 in just fourth position. His teammate Nico Rosberg pinched the lead and held it for more than half the race, but lost out to Hamilton with a mistake of his own just after half distance.
"Nice work Lewis, get in there, pal!" Hamilton's race engineer said over the in-car radio after he crossed the line. "Beautifully recovered, mate. Beautifully recovered."
Key first chicane
After a few early laps negotiating his way past Felipe Massa and Kevin Magnussen - passing Massa with gusto around the outside in the first chicane - Hamilton re-established the Mercedes 1-2 and set about chasing down his teammate. The pair held station until around half-distance, following their sole pit stops of the race. Hamilton closed the gap after the stops, soon prompting Nico Rosberg to out-brake himself and run wide into the first turn on lap 29.
Hamilton then took the lead as Rosberg weaved through the run-off area. The Silver Arrows held station to the end, despite Hamilton nearly outbraking himself into the first chicane in the closing laps.
Former Ferrari driver and Tifosi favorite Felipe Massa, now driving for Williams, rounded out one of the season's most popular podiums.
"Thank you guys, very good, very good result - I'm so happy," Massa said over team radio, before addressing the massed fans in Italian from the podium itself.
Seven Mercedes motors in top 10
Valtterri Bottas' start in the other Williams was even worse than Hamilton's; he plummeted from third on the grid to 11th off the line. However, after a combative fight back through the field, Bottas recovered to fourth position, ahead of the Red Bulls of Daniel Ricciardo and Sebastian Vettel. Ricciardo passed Vettel late in the race to again best his four-time World Champion teammate.
Sergio Perez, Jenson Button, Kimi Raikkonen and Kevin Magnussen rounded out the points-paying places, with Raikkonen at least salvaging some pride for Ferrari in ninth position. Fernando Alonso retired while running in the points - picking the worst possible moment for his first mechanical retirement in more than four years.
Hamilton's win pulled him to within 22 points of Rosberg in the overall drivers' standings with six races left in the Formula One season. Mercedes extended their overwhelming lead in front of Red Bull for the constructors' title. The next race is the Singapore Grand Prix on September 21.
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