Shoeys Are Officially BACK: Daniel Ricciardo Wins a Dramatic Italian Grand Prix

Andy Hone. Shutterstock Images.

Daniel Ricciardo has won the Italian Grand Prix. I am still in shock. What a stunning weekend it's been at Monza and I can't think of a better way for it to end than with Daniel Ricciardo drinking champagne out of his race boot. You love to see it. 

This is Ricciardo's eighth Grand Prix win of his career but his first win since 2018. If you've watched "Drive to Survive" on Netflix, you've seen Ricciardo's journey to get to this moment and can understand how much being a Grand Prix winner again means to him. He left Red Bull after the 2018 season to move to Renault, in hopes that being the number one driver for the french team would give him more chances to win races, but it never materialized over the two years he spent there. Coming into this season, Ricciardo made the jump to McLaren, once again hoping to end up in a car that could get him back on the top step of the podium. Today that dream was realized. The Honey Badger is officially back. What a moment. The man has earned the right to drink champagne out of any sweaty, dirty shoe he wants. It was a magical day in Italy for McLaren, with Lando Norris finishing in second place behind Ricciardo as well.

Need to get Ricciardo back on Pardon My Take to tell everyone about the legendary party he's going to have tonight celebrating. 

In the World Championship battle, it was a dramatic day for Max Verstappen and Sir Lewis Hamilton. Verstappen started the race in first place but was immediately passed by Ricciardo on lap one. Hamilton held onto fourth place at the start but was stuck behind Norris unable to get past him. Both Verstappen and Hamilton were hoping to potentially pass the McLaren drivers in the pit lane, but the racing gods had other plans for the two of them.

First, Verstappen's pit stop ended up being eleven seconds long, compared to the usual two to three-second stop. This was a massive setback for Verstappen's race. Then Hamilton came into the pits a few laps later and had a longer than usual stop which meant when he was exiting pit road he was side by side with Verstappen going into the first corner. CHAOS.

I keep thinking every race that this World Championship battle can't get any more dramatic, but once again I have been proved incredibly wrong. Should Verstappen have backed out of the corner? Did Hamilton give Verstappen enough space to make the corner? Was this just a racing incident? If you like Hamilton and Mercedes you're going to blame this crash on Verstappen and vice versa. This is like the Dez Bryant "what is a catch" debate where everyone has an opinion but there's no clear answer, just something fans will debate for years. There will be endless debates for the rest of the season and years to come for who was at fault for this crash.

Many people believed that this weekend was a perfect opportunity for Hamilton to take back control of the World Championship because the Mercedes car was better suited for the high-top speed Monza circuit. This was supposed to be Mercedes weekend, but those dreams were run over when the two drivers collided. Thankfully Hamilton was ok after this crash because, without the halo ring around his cockpit, he would have been in extreme danger. Just look at how close Hamilton's head was when Verstappen's car came over the top of him. Terrifying.

After today, Verstappen holds a five-point lead in the Driver's Championship over Hamilton with eight races left in the season. The season is getting down to the final stretch of races and every point is crucial, which is why some people are arguing that Verstappen was more reckless going into the corner because he knew that if he crashed with Hamilton it wasn't the worst outcome in terms of the Championship. Mercedes Team Principal, Toto Wolff, even went as far as to call the crash a "tactical foul" from Verstappen. Red Bull Team Principal, Christian Horner, defended Verstappen and said that it was clearly a racing incident. The final decision from the Stewards was that Verstappen was at fault for the accident and awarded him a three-place grid penalty at the next race.

The real winner after this weekend is the "Drive to Survive" producers who have once again been given an absolute GOLD MINE of content. People who watch the Netflix show in the Spring will think that this season was scripted because it's been that dramatic. F1 will be one of the most popular sports in America after people get hooked on all of the drama that's unfolded this year.

Another big winner from today was the other Mercedes driver, Valtteri Bottas, who finished in third place rounding out the podium behind the McLaren drivers. Bottas has been through hell and back this week. The week started with the announcement that he had lost his Mercedes seat for next year to William's driver, George Russell. He then went out on Friday and qualified in pole position, and followed that up by winning the Sprint race on Saturday. However, Bottas had to start in last place today in the main race after he changed an engine part on his car. He battled all the way back through the field to finish on the podium. I personally like Bottas, so I was happy to see him get a small victory on what's been a tough week for him. Just look at the smile on his face. 

Bottas also scored some crucial points to help keep Mercedes in the lead of Constructor's Championship over Red Bull. Both Championships are going to come down to the final races this season. Buckle up, it's going to be a wild ride this fall.

What a race. What a season. F1 is off next week but returns on September, 26th for the Russian Grand Prix. Start responsibly putting in your bets now on the Barstool Sportsbook for who's going to win. You could be like this "anonymous" Barstool Sportsbook bettor who cashed Ricciardo to win +1400 today…

Current mood:

LIGHTS OUT AND AWAY WE GO to the Russian Grand Prix…