Constructors’ Championship leaders Red Bull Racing had to settle for sixth and 11th in qualifying.
Sebastian Vettel, who qualified sixth, will start from fifth as a result of the gearbox change penalty awarded to Paul di Resta. Vettel finished Q2 just over a tenth ahead of his team-mate – but it was enough to see the World Champion through to Q3, while Mark Webber was eliminated.
"It’s pretty much what we expected today,” said Webber. “Seb and I were on the bubble there; it was very close between us - there’s only a tenth here and there and I’m out. No massive surprises. I’m 11th, so we can have a bit of a choice on what we can do tonight, but I’d rather be further up the grid. We’ve got a bit of a slog tomorrow; but it’s Monza so never say never."
Vettel professed himself happy to finish the session in sixth place – this despite having finished on the podium six days ago at Spa. “I’m pretty happy with the result; my last lap should have been a bit quicker, but whether it would have made a difference or not is hard to say. If you look from us to the front, the gaps are too big. All weekend we were not quick enough, so P6 is a very good place to be. Let’s see what we can do in the race, I think the pace tomorrow should be better."
Vettel missed out on the opportunity to complete a qualifying simulation run on the option tyres during Saturday morning’s FP3. With a few minutes of the session remaining he pulled off the track at the Ascari chicane with what was later defined as an alternator failure. Renault have sent the unit for analysis but stress this is a upgraded version of the device and not susceptible to the failure which afflicted Vettel and Lotus’s Romain Grosjean at the European Grand Prix.