By Nick Tomlinson

McLaren went into the start of the Italian Grand Prix believing that they had the best all-round package for the race ahead.

After a decent qualifying session the cars were sitting second and third, with Lewis Hamilton just ahead of his team mate Jenson Button.

Both the McLaren drivers knew at the start of the race that if they wanted to keep a realistic chance of catching Sebastian Vettel in the World Championship then they would both need to finish ahead of him and hope that he’d finish well down the order in the last few races to come, starting with the Italian race at Monza.

Off the grid and Lewis got a good start and was unlucky not to be leading into the first corner had it not been for some breath taking driving from Fernando Alonso.

Heading down the straight the Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren were neck and neck but it was Alonso who came out first followed by Vettel and Hamilton.

From this moment on I think this is where it starting going wrong for Hamilton and turned into another disappointing race for him.

Button got another poor start to add to his collection from this year, the 2009 World Champion was slow off the line and this resulted in him losing several places.

A pile up at the first corner brought the safety car out and from the restart experienced Michael Schumacher caught Hamilton asleep and went straight past him.

From then on Schumacher started being a real hindrance to the McLaren and in one controversial moment the German forced Hamilton off the track, he was very lucky to not get a penalty from the stewards. This allowed Button past Hamilton and then shortly later he overtook Schumacher as well.

When Hamilton finally got past Schumacher it was too late to really challenge for a podium and he had to settle for fourth however team mate Button went on putting some fast laps in and was able to catch and pass Alonso’s Ferrari to give Button second place behind Championship leader Vettel.

McLaren will comeaway disappointed from Italy as they could have had a one-two finish had a few little things gone there way. Had Hamilton been paying attention after the safety car had gone in he would still have been in contention rather than stuck behind Schumacher.

Also if Jenson had got a good start off the line he too would have been in contention rather than having to fight his way through, McLaren had the best package but on the day they didn’t turn up.

This result leaves Button 117 points behind Vettel with only six races left, Hamilton’s even further back, 126 points off the Red Bull.

What I think McLaren need to do is just forget this year now they’ve got no chance of catching Vettel, they should start looking to the future and put all their development time into next year’s car!

What are your thoughts on what McLaren’s approach for the rest of the season? Get in touch on Twitter and let us know. 

Check out the Italian Grand Prix race report here and reaction to the events of Monza here. Highlights of the race are also available to watch, while you can read more from Martin Whitmarsh and his take on the Italian Grand Prix here.

Finally, there is so much to bet on during the rest of the Formula 1 season, sign up to 188bet here to get the latest information and to start putting your money where your mouth is!

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