Giorgio Pantano has won today's race in Monza, as Lewis Hamilton wrapped up his championship in style with second place.
Giorgio Pantano has added his name to the short list of dual race winners over a race weekend by holding on in the closing stages of race two to cross the line just 0.4 seconds ahead of series champion Lewis Hamilton in Monza.
The Italian drove a superb race under unrelenting pressure from Hamilton, running an inch perfect racing line for 21 laps to claim his third win of the season for FMS International.
The win was set up at the start when he blew past the seven drivers in front of him on the grid to lead the field into the first chicane, with Hamilton right on his rear wing. He was assisted by polesitter Hiroki Yoshimoto's slow getaway bunching the field up behind him, which allowed the pair to blast past.
Clivio Piccione was the next man through from second on the grid, followed by Nicolas Lapierre, Alex Premat and Nelson Piquet Jr. Behind them was chaos as stalled cars delayed most of the drivers at the back of the grid, while in front of them Jose Maria Lopez failed to stop in time for the chicane and landed on Javier Villa's rear wing. The pair limped back to the pits and retirement.
Yesterday's fastest three drivers were showing that the had lost none of their speed overnight, with Pantano and Hamilton swapping fastest laps at the front while Piquet made short work of getting by the French drivers in front of him and put himself on the back of Piccione by the end of lap two.
With the front pair tearing off into the distance Piquet was desperate to find a way by Piccione and put himself in the hunt, but the Monegasque driver was resolute in defence: for lap after lap the Brazilian tried to find a way by, but Piccione somehow just hung on in front of him.
Piquet's job became more urgent when Hamilton ran well wide at Lesmo, coating his tyres in gravel and sliding back to within touching distance of Piccione. Piquet redoubled his efforts with his title rival within sight, but coming into the first chicane he just lost downforce on the front of his car and gently spun through the corner.
Hamilton was now six seconds behind Pantano and drove like a man possessed, reeling in fastest lap after fastest lap in pursuit of one final win for the year while Piquet, now down in eighth position, drove equally fiercely as he attempted to undo the mistake he had made.
Meanwhile Premat had found a way to get past countryman Lapierre for fourth position, but his hard work was undone when he spun at the Lesmo corner and ran through the gravel trap: he lost five positions and was into the pits and retirement one lap later.
Piquet blew past Luca Filippi at the chicane next time by to put himself back into the points, right on the tail of Yoshimoto, but the Japanese was furious at himself for his poor start and was not in the mood to hand out charity.
But at the front all eyes were on the shrinking gap between Pantano and Hamilton. The Briton inevitably caught up to the Italian and was looking for a way past everywhere: he eventually got past at the Ascari complex, but as he had cut the corner Hamilton had no option but to hand the lead back and try again.
As his team boss Paolo Coloni sat nervously on the pitwall Pantano drive an inch perfect race in the closing laps, and when the chequered flag came out he had done enough: Pantano just held Hamilton off as the pair cross the line nose to tail.
Piccione was the next man to cross the line to bring home some silverware to his DPR team, while Lapierre was at the front of a train consisting of Yoshimoto, Piquet and Filippi. Hamilton got the extra point for fastest lap, the icing on the cake of his championship winning weekend.
