Brendon Hartley’s Italian Grand Prix debut came to an unfortunate and early end just after the lights went out, when contact from another competitor damaged his Scuderia Toro Rosso and forced the Kiwi into immediate retirement.
 
Having just missed out on a spot in Q2 by less than a hundredth of a second on Saturday, Brendon was hopeful that despite qualifying in P18, his promotion up to P16 as a result of grid penalties for some of his competitors would help him resurrect his weekend.
 
Despite getting a good initial get away, Hartley would fall victim to the typically frantic Italian Grand Prix start. Contact from both Stoffel Vandoorne and Marcus Ericsson saw his race ended before he could even reach the first corner.
 
Brendon Hartley – #28 Scuderia Toro Rosso:
“I was really looking forward to my first Monza GP. I felt very strong all weekend and was very close to Pierre in Qualifying – even if that meant starting a few positions lower on the grid – I was confident of having a strong race. Unfortunately, right after the start, Ericsson moved a little bit to the left trying to pass me. It wasn’t that aggressive what he did, but it was enough to put an end to my day before Turn 1. It’s been a great race to watch from the outside, but of course I would have preferred to be on track and finish the race.”
 
Next Round:
Round 15 – Singapore Grand Prix, Sunday 16^th September 2018.