Lew is a Monz-ter HAMMY ON TOP

A DRAMATIC last-minute burst of genius secured Lewis Hamilton his sixth pole in eight races for today’s Italian Grand Prix at Monza.

He edged team-mate Valtteri Bottas by just 0.069secs in yet another Mercedes one-two and showcased his remarkable skill and daring with a new fastest lap ever at the track.

That put Hamilton on course for his 90th grand prix victory in today’s race at the tricky 3.6-mile circuit.

It was a spectacular show and Bottas said: “I thought I had got the fastest lap but Lewis overtook me right at the end. He was just superb.”

McLaren’s Carlos Sainz was third, ahead of Racing Point’s Sergio Perez and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.

But this was all about Mercedes’ awesome duo, who completely overshadowed their hapless chasers in the practice build-up and, when it mattered most, in the final shootout.

It was a thrilling qualifying session that saw, yet again, the embarrassing demise of the hopeless Ferrari pair.

Four-time champion Sebastian Vettel was eliminated in the first session of qualifying and Charles Leclerc slumped in the second.

Hamilton, though, revelled in his monopoly at Monza’s 90th grand prix, as the Brit notched a double of fastest-ever laps, with a final fling of 1min, 19.068secs – beating Kimi Raikkonen’s record.

“That was fantastic,” said Hamilton, winner in 2012, ’14, ’15, ’17 and ’18.

“The entire team starred and the backroom boys gave me a car that matched my ambitions. Valtteri was in great form and it was not easy for me to beat him. It was so close.”

Mercedes have dominated the season by taking pole at all seven rounds and winning every race except for the 70th anniversary Grand Prix at Silverstone.

QUALI RESULTS: 1 Lewis Hamilton (UK) Mercedes

1min 18.887secs, 2 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes

1:18.956, 3 Carlos Sainz Jr. (Esp) McLaren 1:19.695,

4 Sergio Perez (Mex) Racing Point 1:19.720, 5 Max Verstappen (Nl) Red Bull 1:19.795, 6 Lando Norris (UK) McLaren 1:19.820, 7 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Renault

1:19.864, 8 Lance Stroll (Can) Racing Point 1:20.049,

9 Alex Albon (Thai) Red Bull 1:20.090, 10 Pierre Gasly (Fr) AlphaTauri 1:20.177.