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Lewis Hamilton has kept his Italian GP victory after an investigation by the FIA involving the tyre pressures on his car.

Tyre pressures have been a major talking point this weekend after the problems in Spa, and Pirelli made it clear that teams had to respect its mandated minimums for safety reasons. Unusually the pressures of the top four cars were measured at the last minute on the grid.

While the Ferraris were above the limit, one of Hamilton’s tyres was 0.3psi below the limit, and one of team mate Nico Rosberg’s was 1.1psi below. This was duly reported to the stewards.

However, after a long post-race investigation the FIA eventually concluded that the tyre pressures were in fact legal “when they were fitted to the car.”

The FIA added: “The stewards recommend that the tyre manufacturer and the FIA hold further meetings to provide clear guidance to the teams on measurement protocols.”

Team boss Toto Wolff said: “We were exactly on the minimum pressures like we should have been when the tyres were put on the car. I don’t know where the discrepancy came from, but it was not procedural and it was not a mistake done by the team in order to gain an advantage.

“Always being called to the stewards you are nervous after such a victory, having lost Nico’s car two laps to the end. So I’m a little bit relieved after that now.”

Max Verstappen has been given a drive through penalty for an unsafe release in qualifying after the engine cover flew off his Toro Rosso shortly after he left the pits.

Verstappen had an engine issue in Q1 and was only able to take to the track in the closing minutes of the session.

The engine cover flew off early in the lap, leaving debris on the track. Although it appeared that it might have been the result of ‘finger trouble’ and a mistake by the mechanics, the Dutch driver told journalists that the team knew that not all the fastening screws were done up, but had opted to send the car out anyway.

The FIA considered that decision a serious matter, especially given the current debate over debris in the light of both the Spa tyre failures and the Justin Wilson accident.

“We were really in a hurry,” said Verstappen. “Normally we wouldn’t get it done, but I was quite surprised the team did a really good job on that. Then I think the bodywork was only like 50% from all the bolts, because they thought it would hold on, as it’s quite strong. But I think it just got too much vibration out of the pit. It’s very thin carbon.”

Asked why the team was keen for him to go out he said: “Just to check the engine and see if everything was alright.”

Verstappen also has 30 places of grid penalties for engine changes.

Daniel Ricciardo, Dany Kvyat and Carlos Sainz are all set to make a double power unit change in Monza in response to the strategy adopted by McLaren at Spa.

After the Austrian GP the FIA decreed that no engine penalties carried into the race, and thus the maximum penalty could be a back of the grid start. McLaren took advantage of that in Belgium by doing two changes with both drivers, a move that helped to ensure a good supply of ‘healthy’ components for the last part of the season.

Red Bull and Toro Rosso have both decided to do the same at Monza, while Max Verstappen will make a single change for Saturday, and will thus also have penalties.

The strategy is also a response to Renault telling the teams that its full update package will probably not be available in Russia, as had been promised, and will now most likely be in Austin.

Both teams now have extra elements with which to tackle to Singapore, Japan and Russian GP weekends, and indeed in theory also have enough parts to get to the end of the season without further penalties if they do not actually use the upgraded package, even if it becomes available.

“The reasoning is that we take Monza as a place to introduce everything that they need to finish the season,” Renault’s Remi Taffin told this writer. “So from Saturday onwards we should be OK not introduce any more engines. What we decided with the teams was Monza was the place to take everything penalty we need, so we put everything for four drivers to go to the end.”

Despite the Spa tactics McLaren also has grid penalties in Monza, with Jenson Button currently on five, and Fernando Alonso on 10.

Formula One Management has issued a strong statement of support for Pirelli in response to the Belgian GP tyre controversy.

Although Bernie Ecclestone has not put his name to the statement, it obviously represents his views. He has long been close to the Italian company, and encouraged it to return to F1.

In essence FOM is reminding everyone that Pirelli was asked to provide tyres that don’t last a race distance. FOM’s support would also appear to makes it clear that Pirelli will get the next contract for 2017-2019.

The statement said: “Pirelli has been a first class partner of Formula One during the five seasons in which it has been the Official Supplier of Tyres to the FIA Formula One World Championship and we continue to have full confidence in the safety, quality and suitability of its tyres.

“Within the constraints of safety considerations, which are always paramount, Formula One encourages Pirelli to provide tyre compounds with performance limitations because tyre degradation contributes to the challenge and entertainment of a Formula One race. When doing so, Pirelli provides strong guidance to competitors about any performance limitations of the tyres supplied. Competitors should heed Pirelli’s expert advice when setting their race strategy and tactics, and if they do not, it is at their own risk.

“We are entirely satisfied that Pirelli was not at fault for any tyre-related incidents during the 2015 Formula 1 Shell Belgian Grand Prix.

“Pirelli has offered to provide to each car a single set of tyres to last for an entire Event. While we know that they would be very capable of it, a race with no pit stops would be less exciting.

“Thank you, Pirelli, for helping us to deliver excitement to Formula One fans!”

Nico Hulkenberg will stay with Force India for another two seasons, the team has confirmed.

The German had been linked with Haas – which potentially offered an eventual route into Ferrari – but he has decided to stay put.

“I’m very pleased to finalise and announce my plans for the future,” he said. “I know this team inside out and I feel at home here, so it made perfect sense to make a long-term commitment. The progress the team has shown over the last two years has really impressed me and gives me confidence for the future.

“It’s a great group of people who are hungry for success and want to keep improving year-on-year. I think we have the important things in place going forward and I want to continue growing with this team as we move even further up the grid.”

Team boss Vihay Mallya added: “I make no secret of being one of Nico’s biggest fans and so it’s fantastic to confirm him as our driver for the next couple of seasons. He has spent almost four years with us already and in that time we’ve seen him develop into one of the best racing drivers in the world. Nico has the speed, the technical knowledge and the maturity to help us achieve some great results in the years ahead. We will do everything we can to continue delivering a car to match his talent.”

Hulkenberg’s confirmation leaves Esteban Gutierrez, Jean-Eric Vergne and Kevin Magnussen as favourites for Haas drives.

Sebastian Vettel has broken his silence after the Belgian GP by underlining that he backed Ferrari’s one-stop strategy at Spa.

Vettel only spoke briefly to TV camera crews after the race, and not to print media, before dashing to the local airport – supposedly to beat an incoming storm. However, his TV comments revealed just how angry he was.

He has now reiterated that Ferrari didn’t take a risk by running a one-stopper and a long final stint.

In a statement in German on his website he said: “Just to make it clear, the team and I jointly decided on this strategy. I stand behind the team and the team is behind me. That makes us a team. The strategy was at no time risky. The team is not to blame.”

Pirelli motor sport boss Paul Hembery is adamant that Sebastian Vettel’s tyre failure in the Belgian GP was a result of wear after Ferrari ran a single-stop stop strategy.

Ferrari has denied that it took any risks by trying to run 29 laps from Vettel’s lap 14 stop to the flag, but Hembery said it the issue was clear.

“Rosberg was an external cut, this was pure wear,” he said. “If you look at the images, the carcass was still intact so it was a wear issue, the second one on Friday was a cut.

“Actually it is the front tyre that gets hurt the most, that is the one you tend to be worried about here. Friday was a cut, and in this case it was wear. The tyre was finished.”

Hembery said Pirelli didn’t expect teams to run such a long stint.

“He did 28 laps. It is more we thought the strategy was going to be based on two or three stops, which you saw the majority did. They felt clearly that they could make it work on a one-stop and the wear life was indicated at 40 laps – and race conditions can change that. Some factors involved in racing mean that is not precise data. Other teams were clearly taking a different direction.

Regarding Vettel’s reaction he said: “You can always understand a drivers’ reaction when they get hot out of the car. I am not going to say anything negative about that. With time you have a chat, but that is normal.

He added: “It is perfectly easy to say at the end of the race with hindsight. If the race had been one lap less he would have been on the podium and said what a genius move! That is tough.”

Sebastian Vettel was keen to speak his mind when he faced TV cameras just a few minutes after a spectacular tyre failure robbed him of third place at Spa.

Vettel retired less than two laps from the flag after suffering a failure of the right rear, as experienced by Nico Rosberg on Friday.

The German denied that he and Ferrari had pushed the Pirellis too hard by trying to get from lap 14 to the finish at lap 43.

“How many laps I was missing, not many?,” he said. “Things like that are not allowed to happen, full stop. If it happened 200 metres earlier, I’m not standing here now, I’m with 300 [km/h] stuck in Eau Rouge. I don’t know what else needs to happen.

“I tell you what is upsetting, one thing is the result. This is racing. For sure we deserved to finish on the podium. The other thing as I said is if this happens earlier… I think it’s a sort of theme that’s going around, nobody’s mentioning, but it’s unacceptable.”

Vettel talked to the FIA about tyres in Friday afternoon’s drivers’ briefing, soon after the Rosberg failure. Asked if his view was taken seriously he said: “I think it was. But what’s the answer? Same as every time, there was a cut, debris, maybe something wrong with the bodywork, the driver went wide. Bullshit. If Nico tells us that he didn’t go off the track, he didn’t go off the track. Same with me, I didn’t go off the track, it’s just out of the blue, the tyre explodes. As I said if this happens earlier, then #####.”

Vettel said that the drivers should talk about the issue.

“I think we need to speak to each other. It’s probably not as bad as it was in Silverstone some years ago, but it’s not acceptable.”

Romain Grosjean’s popular third place in Spa was the first podium earned by the Frenchman and his Lotus team since the 2013 US GP.

The result also came three years after his infamous first lap crash at Spa.

“I remember Austin,” he said today. “A long time ago, but I still remember I was a bit drunk at the press conference! A little bit too much champagne on the podium with Seb. It has been up and down here for me. Of course Spa 2012 with Lewis was a bit of a tough time, but on the other side it’s helped me because who I am today and being able to be on the podium with how we are during the weekend shows how strong our guys, and how strong we’re capable of building a car and be there. It was a great race, I enjoyed every minute and if we can do it again, let’s go.”

Although he ultimately earned it after Sebastian Vettel had a puncture right in front of him Grosjean had been pushing the German hard in the closing laps.

“I was really closing the gap on Seb,” he explained. “It’s very unfortunate he had that puncture and it was a bit of a scary moment just being behind. I think we got everything we could get today, starting from P4 on the grid I’m sure we would have had a much easier race but it was really good fun. All the overtaking into Turn Five, I was really taking it as hard as I could on brake. Probably one of my best races ever.”

Like several of his rivals Grosjean pitted under the Virtual Safety Car.

“I went through Eau Rouge on that lap and they just told me on the radio ‘safety car window is open’ and I did finish the lap, and ‘safety car’ came up on the steering wheel and we pitted as planned. We needed to fit the prime tyre for the end of the race. I think then I lost a position to Seb, they stayed on the one-stop strategy which was quite aggressive and we didn’t think we’d be able to do it. I knew the safety car window was open, and if the safety car, the virtual safety car, was lasting long enough for me to rejoin the pit or get in the pit before it ended, it was the strategy for me to stop.”

Grosjean said that he didn’t get extra motivation from the situation surrounding Lotus.

“I think, as a racing driver in general, every time we start a race the idea is to try to win it. You know what you have in your hands and you know that sometimes it is not possible but as long as you do everything with 100 per cent of your performance you can fly home in the evening being proud of what you did. That’s what I want to achieve.

“Sometimes there’s been times in the past year where you score one point or two points and it has been an incredible performance, probably you can’t see it on TV because it’s hidden by the fact that the car is not as good – but every time I just in the car it’s to give my best. It’s cost me a little bit in the past but putting things in the right order makes it good today.”

Regarding the next race he said: “I think Monza is a big difference in a way that there are special aero packages for Monza and it’s one race out of 19 where it’s always difficult to know exactly what’s going to be there. I’m sure in term of pole everything is going to be under control. Hopefully is working as well as it is today but I think right now I’m just thinking about having a good drink tonight!”