Following on from the classic racing at Spa-Francorchamps, Formula One moves on to the historic, highly emotional hijinks at Monza. With a championship on tenterhooks, teammates falling out, and everyone else waiting to capitalise as soon as they can, the season is balanced on a knife edge. The passionate fans in Italy will want the best for Ferrari, who may not do so well around the high speed track, but everyone involved are bound to put on a good show.

Event schedule

Mercedes have captured all the attention over the past couple of weeks, following their early-race fall-out in Belgium. The likelihood is they'll be on the front row again together this weekend, so what will happen into the first corner at Monza is anyone's guess. Naturally, Fernando Alonso and Kimi Räikkönen will want to impress the bosses, but it's Williams who are hoping to recapture some of their earlier form.

Towards the rear of the field, the driver swapping appears to have gone back to normal for now, but there's no knowing who will appear at the back of the grid on Sunday.

Support racing for this event includes GP2, GP3 and Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.

Expected conditions

The long range weather forecasts show no rain throughout the weekend, but the sun isn't exactly shining high. Friday and Saturday look to be overcast, with a chance of precipitation during practice but nothing during qualifying. Sunday may see some sunshine but it's likely to remain cloudy throughout.

Track information

One of the key points of interest for anyone visiting the Monza track is the old banking that made up the historic track. Just a few short strides away from the current circuit, it shows off the mixture of old and new that Italy encapsulates so well. At its heart, the track is four long straights with just a handful of corners joining them together. It used to be just that, and the nature of the lengthy straights is what allows such fast speeds to be reached.

Over the years, chicanes have been introduced, peppering the track and slowing speeds down. This year, there's been a small change to the Parabolica, with asphalt run off area replacing the existing gravel trap. Some are concerned it is taking yet more of the challenge away from Monza, but after seeing Felipe Massa scraping his Williams upside down across the tarmac in Germany, I'm all for less gravel and more flat surfaces.

Circuit history

Of the last six races, there have been five different teams taking victory. Red Bull are the only repeat winners, with Sebastian Vettel (who also managed a win with Toro Rosso as well). Monza was the site of the German's first F1 win, making him the youngest driver to take victory at the time.

Fernando Alonso has won twice in Italy, with two different teams - the first was in 2007 with McLaren, and the second in 2010 with Ferrari. The Scuderia have the most success in Italy, with 18 victories overall. Mclaren aren't that far behind with 10. Pole position at Monza is key, with 11 of the last 14 winners being the pole sitter.

Tyre compounds

This weekend, due to the fast and furious nature of the Italian Grand Prix track, Pirelli are bringing the two hardest compounds. The orange sidewalled hard tyres are the most durable of the choices, with the white-walled medium tyres back in action yet again.

The cars run a very low downforce set-up for Monza to maximise their top speed on the straights. This has a distinct effect on the tyres, as less downforce means that the cars tend to slide more and run a greater risk of wheels locking up in the braking areas, which are a key element of Monza. These lock-ups can lead to flat spots, although the design of our tyre structure and compounds this year means that flat spots are a much less common occurrence than they used to be.

- Paul Hembery

Press conference schedule

Official press conferences are organised by the FIA and happen four times during the weekend. The qualifying and post race press conferences will take place after the television unilateral interviews.

Race stewards

The FIA stewarding process includes a former F1 driver to offer added insight. These stewards are overseeing the weekend's action.