The day is very different. The tone from Ferrari on Saturday was a completely desolate one. Lewis Hamilton, who ranked 12th only, ranked 12th, declared himself “in trouble” with only one position with his teammate. But, by Sunday night, it was difficult to wipe the smile from Hamilton's face with the Imola Media Pen.
Of course, if you tell the majority of the 242,000 fans - the vast majority of the decks are red - appearing earlier in the weekend, fourth and sixth will be the ends for Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, the celebrations will be few. Hamilton's first Ferrari race in Italy was in an upgraded car with the goal of marking a defined turning point. Therefore, no silver bullet was found.
However, it makes the road to rejuvenation more obvious. Blind, actually. Hamilton’s excellent drives range from 12th to 4th, and despite benefiting from two timing safety car episodes, they then encountered a joyous scene in Rivazza Hill. So far, this is Scuderia's best result of the season.
Ferrari's principal Fred Vasseur gasped overnight under the tremendous pressure from the Italian media. With the pressure installed, there is some room to breathe. Damage restrictions have been achieved.
“We were able to react today, at least to some extent, a possible negative weekend,” Vasseur said. “We had a strong pace from start to finish. We had a good strategy and the pits were executed well.
“Of course, there’s some frustration because if we’re better qualified we can complete orders with higher orders. There are three or four games now and we’ve seen the difference between the qualifying and the speed of the game.
“We have to work hard.”
This is not a new narrative for Hamilton. His huge record of more than one lap last year led to his worst-performing eligible campaign in 18 F1 sports. More than 24 Grand Prixes, Mercedes teammate George Russell defeated Hamilton 19-5 on Saturday. This year, Leclerc led 6-1.
In the last few years, at least, this means that the seven-time world champions have been used to the recovery drive. As he admits after the game, it brings him the best. But the midfielder didn't win the title.
"I always liked this when you back and pass further, and that's how I started since I was a kid," he said. Hamilton's best win ever was at 2021's Interlagos, where he rose from Dead to his highest point.
"It's always better than the feeling of starting first and ending first. Absolutely big games and a lot of positive enthusiasm can be taken from it."
But while Hamilton saved Ferrari's blush with a 63-lap improvement, he lost the Leclerc's reel during the safety car period. Joining Williams' Alex Albon in a skirmish, Leclerc was forced to abandon two places for the closing ceremony. When asked about his chance to defend the crown in Monaco next week, Monegasque's response was clear: "No."
No wonder. Ferrari has so far this season, with only three top three qualifying matches, Bahrain’s Leclerc and a podium in Saudi Arabia’s Leclerc. They are the fourth Quickest team. Hamilton ignored his sprint and victory in China, and Hamilton's qualification is no higher than fifth, with an overall average of 8.7. No wonder the podium is out of reach.
"We just need to unleash the potential of the qualifying match," said the 40-year-old, who now has a 93-point gap. “If we have better qualifications, we will always fight for the podium.
“I have some ideas that I will apply next week (in Monaco). People are a little reluctant to do that because we have a lot of other things to focus on, but I hope next week we can find something that can unlock more performance.
"Our cars are usually good at high speeds, OK at medium levels and not as strong as others. Obviously the next race (in Monaco) is all low, so we'll see what we are doing."
However, as F1 enters its traditional crown jewellery game, tense twists and turns around Monte-Carlo – there is a mandatory two pits added to the array this year, the most convincing statistic after Ferrari’s two decades of death.
With the outstanding victory of Max Verstappen, Red Bull is now leading the biggest win of the century. In their 124th victory in Game 400, the energy drink outfit now stands out on its own, exceeding Michael Schumacher and others.
For Red Bull boss Christian Horner, it's some records as the sun is pleasantly stunning when Sunday falls. It also shows Ferrari's lasting problem, dating back to Vasseur's tenure, challenging both Hamilton and Leclerc's scales to overcome this season and the next. Historical horses are very heavy.