Monza

If you are going to do a lap of Monza, there is no more fitting of a choice than the 499P, Ferrari's Le Mans overall winning car from 2023.

You start where else but the start finish straight. Thankfully you have plenty of time to spot your braking zone, which can differ greatly depending on the car you use. Begin braking and get as much of the deceleration done before trailing off as you aim for the apex.

In the hypercars, doing that may actually help to slow the cars down even more. Once you have navigated the initial 90 degree corner of Prima Variante, keep as far to the right as possible. This is so you can open up the even tighter next part. On the exit, gradually apply the power and unwind the steering. Now you are free to blast down towards the next corner.

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This corner is a real balancing act in any car.

The flat out Curva Biassono presents no challenge for any car since Prima Variante has slowed you down sufficiently. Plenty of time to go to the right hand side and look for your braking zone into another chicane. The difference this time is that you will want to carry as much momentum as you can.

Throw the car into the first part of Seconda Variante but open it up for the second part of the corner. Try to straightline the kerb as much as you can without accidentally loading up Flight Simulator, and now every corner gets faster and faster.

Gradually Faster Corners​

Next up are the Lesmos. For the first, quickly brake and drop down a gear, trail off the brakes as you head towards the apex. Then you can ease your way onto the throttle and use the exit kerb to slingshot you towards the second Lesmo.

Whilst the previous Lesmo required gradually slowing, the next one is just a quick flick. Brake and turn quickly towards the corner and carry as much momentum as you can for the next flat out section. Then you are heading towards the famous Ascari corner.

As you shoot below the banking of the old track, it is time to look for the braking point. When you begin turning, you want to not attack the second part of Ascari too much. The corner tightens throughout and going through it too fast will unsettle the car and compromise the exit onto the next straight.

LMU-Monza-Ascari.jpg

It is easy to accidentally cut the first part of Ascari. So do not make the same mistake we did!

Short shift if you have to if the car is twitchy here. You want to run a low-downforce setup for maximum top speed so if it is nervous, then you are doing it right. Hug the right hand side to open up the next corner, quickly negotiate that with a bit of inside kerb and you are now heading towards the final corner.

For the commonly named Parabolica (recently renamed Curva Michele Alboreto), brake and commit to the apex at the same time. Then start deviating towards the outside and keep the wheel inputs to a minimum in order to avoid spinning your wheels on acceleration. Do that and you should nail the entry onto the next lap.

Onto another lap of the historic Monza circuit.

Author: Luca Munro
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