In textbook sports psychology style Lewis Hamilton arrived in Monza saying he felt as pumped and motivated as if he were coming off the back of a “victory” last weekend, regardless of the stewards’ decision to penalise him 25 seconds for missing part of the final chicane at Spa and dropping him to third place. That demeanour will have changed after a dismal qualifying performance caused by an over-confident tyre choice during bouts of heavy rain in the second session yesterday. He starts 15th, but that’s not the whole story. Even after the correct “full wet” tyres had been bolted on, unlike championship rival Felipe Massa, he was still unable to find the necessary pace in conditions in which he normally excels.

The only saving grace for Hamilton is that an equally underwhelming Kimi Raikkonen could manage only 14th, although Ferrari teammate Massa, who sits two points behind Hamilton for the championship, lines up a solid if unspectacular sixth. Raikkonen has announced an extension to his Ferrari contract until the end of 2010. Surely part of that agreement is that he will support Massa’s title challenge for the rest of this year if required. Raikkonen looks like the perfect rear-gunner, and the inevitable concertina into turn one, wet or dry, will present a peril for him and Hamilton.

Yesterday was a chance for the underdogs, although that word doesn’t justify the brilliant performance of 21-year-old Sebastian Vettel, who became the youngest pole-sitter in Formula One history, with the smallest team on the grid, Toro Rosso. He also tops the speed traps, which tells us that he has a full dry set-up too.

Another stand-out performance came from McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen, who starts second, having always appeared to be more comfortable than Hamilton. Possibly the most impressive lap was from third-placed Mark Webber. In ever-more treacherous conditions he strung together a stunning lap in the closing seconds, placing him ahead of an impressive Sebastien Bourdais in the second Toro Rosso. Nico Rosberg confirmed Williams’s pace here with a respectable fifth. Sadly, Jenson Button starts on the back row, in 19th.

Hamilton must feel down on his luck. Last weekend at Spa was the most exciting race the sport has seen for years, a Ferrari and McLaren banging wheels for the world championship, the outcome in doubt into the closing laps, two of the finest drivers slugging it out in the most challenging circumstances imaginable on the calendar’s most demanding track. It was a stunningly exciting spectacle. The subsequent decision to penalise Hamilton poured cold water all over the enraged fans.

Were the stewards right in investigating Hamilton’s move? Absolutely. Most of the drivers agree that he gained an advantage by taking the escape road rather than fully negotiating the corner. Hamilton is a bit too fast and talkative to garner much support from his envious rivals, although they mostly thought the penalty was harsh.

Did the stewards reach the correct decision? From on-board footage, it is clear Hamilton didn’t make an initial overtaking manoeuvre into the chicane; it was a necessary avoidance, because Raikkonen was early on the brakes and only Hamilton’s lightning reactions prevented a huge shunt. Ever the opportunist, he converted this into an overtaking manoeuvre, at which point Raikkonen got off the brakes and reclaimed the apex, legitimately taking the Briton wide. There was a split second when the McLaren could have braked and slotted back in behind the Ferrari, but the man is a pure racer and there is a championship at stake here, after all.

Hamilton took as little of the run-off as possible, given the high concrete inner kerb, but still exited the corner ahead. He blended out of the throttle, allowed Raikkonen fully past, switched sides, travelling 4mph slower, then nailed him into La Source hairpin with the kind of braking superiority just witnessed into the chicane. Hamilton had been significantly faster during the previous lap too, so he had the tyre temperature and confidence to pass the now-struggling Finn easily.

And that is the critical point for me. It was speed superiority that saw him past the Ferrari, not the already given-up advantage from the final corner. The conditions weren’t factored in by the stewards. Hindsight says that Hamilton should have waited a corner, but what if a safety car had been deployed for another rainy incident?

There has now been a clarification that drivers cannot overtake into the next corner in such circumstances, rather confirming that it wasn’t a prior specific or unwritten agreement.

I am not pro-McLaren or pro-Lewis. Or anti-Ferrari. I’m pro-F1. I don’t care who wins, as long as it’s the best driver — and as long as it’s a level playing field. I have had my concerns about that since the illegal/legal Ferrari bargeboard in Malaysia 1999.

Critically, McLaren were apparently told twice by Spa race director Charlie Whiting, the only official line of communication they have during a race, that he was satisfied with the way Hamilton had given the place back. For the highly respected Whiting to have been overridden by the stewards is disturbing. Have these men ever driven or been involved in high-level motorsport? Have they been around Spa at speed? We all want consistency, transparency and speed in these matters, and something must change.

There is a precedent. In Japan in 2005 Fernando Alonso immediately repassed Christian Klien’s Jaguar in a similar manner. The race director forced him to let Klien past for a second time. On the other hand, Michael Schumacher was not penalised for maintaining position with a high-speed trip through the run-off area in Hungary 2006 because “he was ahead in the braking area”. So was Hamilton.

So what’s the solution? At Monza the first chicane run-off features sleeping policemen, a slalom and grass. The second chicane is much more open. There could be a safely located “penalty box” where the drivers must momentarily stop. The bottom line is that the track is clearly defined between two solid white lines, but you’ll see numerous transgressions today.

I suspect Hamilton will not get those points back, which adds extra importance and pressure to his performance today from that lowly grid slot.