Kimi Antonelli came through from the back of the grid to finish first at an exciting Italian Grand Prix. The Mercedes driver had a fun battle with his teammate George Russell, swapping P1 for many laps and in the end taking a popular victory at Monza.
In an action-packed display of battery-led yo-yo racing, Antonelli overcame a grid penalty following a power unit change and a mid-race pitstop to fly through the field and defeat long-time leader Russell, with Max Verstappen defeating McLaren to the final podium position.
The race started with a bang for the sold-out, tifosi-filled grandstands. As shock polesitter Pierre Gasly held firm against Russell, Lewis Hamilton attempted to pass teammate Charles Leclerc down the inside of the tight Turn 1 chicane, with Leclerc pushing Hamilton wide on exit, costing Lewis six positions as he dropped to ninth.
The incident was noted by race control, but on the end of lap 2 Leclerc suffered a huge crash on the exit of the final Parabolica corner as he fended off McLaren’s Oscar Piastri. Leclerc skated across the gravel and went into the outside wall at high speed, escaping unhurt but bringing out the red flag for lengthy barrier repairs.
Russell had been able to pass Gasly on the front straight earlier on the lap, ensuring the Mercedes driver would take the restart from pole, while Verstappen and Franco Colapinto worked their way up to third and fourth from Piastri.
All drivers were afforded a free tyre change under the red flag, with Verstappen the only frontrunner to pick mediums instead of hards. Following an extra formation lap for Yuki Tsunoda being out of position on the grid, Russell defended the lead from Gasly, while Colapinto passed Verstappen for third. But after Verstappen strike back a trademark move around the outside of the second chicane, Colapinto went off the track in the first Lesmo right-hander, dropping the Alpine driver down to P16.
In the chaos behind the pair, Hamilton moved up to fourth at the expense of Piastri, who was battling teammate Norris and Arvid Lindblad. After a rocket start, Antonelli took advantage of that fight to move up to sixth with a double pass on Norris and Lindblad on the main straight.
On lap 7, Alpine’s hopes of a shock win for Gasly was reduced further when he was passed for second by Verstappen. Three laps later, Gasly also lost third to Hamilton, and he was powerless to keep Piastri and Antonelli behind as Alpine dropped to sixth.
Clearing Gasly quickly was supposed to hand Russell a clear path to victory, but on an day where slipstreaming was key, the Mercedes driver was unable to break away from Verstappen and instead starting coming under pressure from the Red Bull, with the pair trading the lead two more times on lap 12 and 15.
But rather than Russell, Antonelli quickly emerged as the more likely of the two Silver Arrows drivers to take victory despite starting from P19. As the last driver of the three cars, some two seconds behind the leaders, Antonelli had already picked off Hamilton and Piastri in quick succession.
Russell’s battle with Verstappen allowed Antonelli to rapidly close in on the lead battle, snatching second away from the Red Bull driver on lap 16. Antonelli only needed one attempt to pass Russell for the lead, claiming control on lap 18 at Turn 1.
The so-called yo-yo racing, with battery deployment dictating straight-line speeds, continued at a speedy pace, with Russell twice retaking the lead on lap 22 and 23. Suggestions from the pit wall to halt the yo-yo racing and build a gap to Verstappen were met with a grumpy reply from Kimi, but he did comply as he tucked in behind Russell and conserved his medium tyres.
The story of the race changed when Lance Stroll ground to a halt in his Aston Martin, with Antonelli and Verstappen using the virtual safety car to swap from the medium and switch to new tyres. The pair came out in sixth and seventh, just 15 seconds behind Russell, who was nursing his hard tyres to the end.
By lap 37 of 53, Antonelli had worked his way past Hamilton and then Piastri to second place, giving himself 16 laps to close the nine-second gap to his leading teammate while Verstappen followed him through into third.
Antonelli was quick but not initially catching Russell fast enough to close the gap, as George escaped for action for a suspected yellow flag infringement. But Russell’s hard tyres started showing worsening signs of wear towards the end of the race, allowing Antonelli to close the gap by the end of lap 47.
The first clash followed at the start of lap 49, with Russell cutting Turn 2 as he desperately tried to keep Antonelli behind. But Kimi went off as well, drifting through the gravel trap on the outside, allowing George to retain the lead.
Not best pleased by the Turn 1 moment, Antonelli tried again on the following lap but opted for a more straight-forward pass between Lesmo 2 and the Variante Ascari.
The Mercedes driver held onto his hard-fought lead until the finish, winning the Italian Grand Prix at the second time of asking. Russell was a defeated second, with Verstappen joining them on the podium.
Piastri and Norris brought home fourth and fifth for McLaren at the expense of Hamilton, who dropped back on worn medium tyres to finish sixth. From pole, Gasly eventually taking seventh at the finish ahead of Lindblad and Colapinto, with the Racing Bulls car of Tsunoda claiming the final point in tenth on his second weekend as a replacement driver.
In an exciting Monza race, Antonelli is the first Italian winner in 60 years as he increasing his championship lead by seven points, now heading Russell by 66 points into next weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix on the newly-built Madring in Madrid.
Italian Grand Prix, race results:
1 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes 1:51:15.281
2 George Russell Mercedes +3.857s
3 Max Verstappen Red Bull-Ford +14.718s
4 Lando Norris McLaren-Mercedes +19.056s
5 Oscar Piastri McLaren-Mercedes +19.253s
6 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +24.655s
7 Pierre Gasly Alpine-Mercedes +27.351s
8 Arvid Lindblad Racing Bulls-Ford +45.136s
9 Franco Colapinto Alpine-Mercedes +47.353s
10 Yuki Tsunoda Racing Bulls-Ford +58.187s
11 Gabriel Bortoleto Audi +65.187s
12 Nico Hulkenberg Audi +66.187s
13 Carlos Sainz Williams-Mercedes +74.117s
14 Liam Lawson Red Bull-Ford +75.609s
15 Oliver Bearman Haas-Ferrari +78.958s
16 Esteban Ocon Haas-Ferrari +1 lap
17 Alexander Albon Williams-Mercedes +1 lap
18 Sergio Perez Cadillac-Ferrari +1 lap
19 Valtteri Bottas Cadillac-Ferrari +1 lap
Lance Stroll Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Fernando Alonso Aston Martin-Honda DNF
Charles Leclerc Ferrari DNF
Kimi Antonelli rose from the back of the grid to claim victory in Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix, capping off a brilliant comeback drive by passing Mercedes team mate and title rival George Russell in the closing laps.
Antonelli started his home race down in 19th position after an engine penalty, with Russell on the front row of the grid, but the youngster rapidly climbed to the front of the field via a devastating blend of raw pace and smart overtaking.
A mid-race Virtual Safety Car played its part in the outcome, when Antonelli opted to pit under caution for a fresh set of medium tyres, and Russell stayed out on used hards, which gradually faded and made his life more difficult.
Aside from a brief trip through the gravel as he attacked Russell late on, Antonelli could not be faulted across 53 laps at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza – making another huge statement in his quest for the 2026 world title.
Russell had to settle for second place, crossing the line some four seconds behind Antonelli, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen completed the podium finishers in a determined display that also featured several bold passes.
Lando Norris beat McLaren team mate Oscar Piastri to fourth via their own close fight, with Lewis Hamilton the lead Ferrari in sixth after team mate Charles Leclerc crashed heavily at the final corner on the second lap of the race.
After his breakthrough pole position, and a promising start, Pierre Gasly struggled to keep up with the front-runners and fell to seventh, as Arvid Lindblad, Franco Colapinto (who did well to recover from an off-track moment) and Yuki Tsunoda completed the points.
Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg were next up in their Audi machines, the latter involved in a Turn 4 scrap with Liam Lawson that was looked at by the stewards, while Carlos Sainz took 13th for Williams.
The aforementioned Lawson ended his second substitute weekend for Red Bull in P14, ahead of Haas pair Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon, Albon in the other Williams and the Cadillacs of Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas.
Both Aston Martin drivers joined Leclerc on the sidelines later in the race – Fernando Alonso returning to the pits with suspected car damage and Lance Stroll pulling off the track due to a hydraulics issue.
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/antonelli-beats-russell-to-italian-grand-prix-win-with-stunning-comeback-drive.15WtFEBT5JEe4drdeO88t2
Charles Leclerc has explained what caused his dramatic crash out of the Italian Grand Prix, with the Monegasque also giving his take on his “way too close” wheel-to-wheel battle with team mate Lewis Hamilton.
After starting from P3 and P4 on the grid – Leclerc ahead of Hamilton – the two Ferraris went side-by-side into the second corner as the race got underway.
Hamilton then had to take to the gravel and dropped backwards, leading the seven-time World Champion to suggest over the radio that he had been pushed off.
Leclerc’s subsequent charge did not last long as the 28-year-old ran off the track at Parabolica and into the barriers on Lap 2, putting him out of the race to the disappointment of the Tifosi watching on. Fortunately he was unharmed in the incident.
Speaking to the media later on, Leclerc firstly shared his thoughts on his fight with Hamilton and conceded that it is “never what you want” to see between team mates.
“With Lewis it was a way too close into Turn 1 and unfortunately in Turn 2 – I don’t know if we had contact or whatsoever,” he explained.
“I was quite a lot on the inside curve and tried to make the corner, which I didn’t do it tight enough, and then I obviously only saw in the mirrors what happened which is never what you want between two cars, between two cars of the same team.”
Reflecting on his exit from the race, Leclerc added: “Then for the crash itself, I went on throttle – on the first lap it felt kind of weird, I had to go back off and on throttle.
“On that second lap, I tried to do the same thing but, I don’t know, it just felt a little bit weird, so we’ll look into it.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/leclerc-explains-monza-crash-as-he-reacts-to-way-too-close-hamilton-battle.5tBJS6iY8muL6Um6cgcnvS
Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli says becoming the first Italian to win his home Formula 1 race in 60 years was a “dream come true” as he pulled off an improbable comeback victory from the back of the Italian Grand Prix grid.
Antonelli started from 19th at Monza because of a planned power unit change, which exceeded his allowance for the season and landed him a back-of-the-grid penalty. Mercedes was still aiming for Antonelli to climb into a solid points-paying position, but Antonelli defied those expectations by quickly emerging at the front of the race.
The Italian ran as high as sixth after only a handful of laps, using a standing restart following a red flag for Charles Leclerc’s accident to further gain ground.
As Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen battled at the front, Antonelli snuck into the fight and started trading the lead with Russell around the halfway point of the 53-lap race.
But with Antonelli on medium rubber after the restart, Mercedes used a virtual safety car to give the Italian a quick pitstop for a fresh set as he chased down hard-tyre runner Russell once more and definitively took the lead with four laps remaining.
“I did not expect it, unbelievable,” Antonelli grinned after the race. “I’m so happy, and I could have never imagined to be here today, but we managed to pull it off, and I’m really, really happy. It’s a dream coming true.”
After chasing down Russell at the end of the race, Antonelli first crossed paths with the Briton at the first chicane, with Russell going deep but Antonelli failing to capitalise on the mistake as he skated into the gravel himself.
Antonelli admitted he feared he had lost his chance to claim the win there and then, but as Russell suffered significant tyre drop-off on old hards, Antonelli was able to decide the race on the following tour.
“It was quite scary during the moment because the tarmac was breaking up, but I still thought I could make the corner,” Antonelli reported. “But once I went over a bit of gravel as well, I went straight, and I was like: ‘Maybe I lost my chance’. But luckily we still had the pace and managed to bring it home.”
Antonelli’s mindset quickly shifted after carving through the field earlier as the 19-year-old started believing he was in the hunt after the restart. “I was up there and I knew I could have had a shot for the win, so I definitely believed in it. Especially when I was behind George,” he said as he collected his seventh win of the season.
“But it was really difficult to break away with the tow being so strong. But we pitted and he stayed out and he struggled a bit with the hards at the end, while with fresher tyres I was able to increase the pace and managed to win it.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/kimi-antonelli-italian-gp-comeback-win-a-dream-come-true/10853067/
Former Formula 1 driver and Sky Sports analyst Martin Brundle insists George Russell must get answers from Mercedes after a virtual safety car strategy potentially cost him victory at the Italian Grand Prix.
Russell looked set to reduce the gap to his championship rival and team-mate Kimi Antonelli at Monza. While Russell stayed out on hard tyres during a virtual safety car period, Antonelli was brought in for fresh mediums. The 20-year-old used the tyre advantage to make his way back up the grid and claim the win at his home race.
“It’s been a very difficult day for George Russell,” Brundle explained. “He will have to surely sit down and talk to the team, and ask, ‘How did that happen? I was leading the race. Why was I not given the preferential cheap pit stop there?'”
Antonelli took a power unit penalty at the Italian Grand Prix, putting him at the back of the starting grid and giving Russell a huge opportunity to close the gap in the standings.
“For the world championship, this was George’s opportunity to do something about the deficit, and the deficit has grown,” Brundle added.
Former W Series driver and Sky Sports pundit Naomi Schiff echoed Brundle’s comments. “I think maybe the reason we’ve seen him be so calm about it right now is because he’s probably questioning himself a little bit as well, and why he wasn’t able to get more of an advantage.
“But I think with hindsight, he will be asking questions, like, ‘Why did I not get to pit during the VSC?’
“Yes, he was on a different strategy and they wanted him to go long, but at the end of the day, a fresher set of tyres could have saved him the victory today.”
https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/martin-brundle-george-russell-must-question-mercedes-over-italian-gp-vsc-call/10853078/
Kimi Antonelli admits his sensational victory in the Italian Grand Prix from P19 on the grid was like a “dream coming true”.
Antonelli’s prospects of a first victory on home soil at Monza seemed unlikely ahead of Sunday’s 53-lap race, with the Italian starting towards the back of the grid after taking new power unit components.
But after the race was red flagged early after Charles Leclerc’s dramatic crash at the final corner, Antonelli had already reached P12 and quickly scythed through the order at the restart.
Battling Merecedes team mate George Russell for the lead, Antonelli was brought into the pits under a mid-race Virtual Safety Car, before using fresher tyres to catch and pass the Briton with four laps remaining.
“Unbelievable, I’m so happy and I could never have imagined to be here today but we managed to pull it off and I’m really happy,” said Antonelli immediately after the race, who added “it’s a dream coming true”.
“After the second restart I was up there and I knew I could have a shot for the win. Definitely I believed in it, especially when I was behind George but it was really difficult because it was really difficult to break away with the tow being so strong.
“At the end, we pitted and he [Russell] stayed out and he struggled a bit with his tyres at the end. With fresher tyres I was able to increase the pace and managed to win it.”
The victory at Monza is the first for an Italian driver since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966, with P19 the second-ever lowest starting position a Grand Prix has been won from in Formula 1 history.
Antonelli’s seventh win of the season moves him 66 points clear of Russell in the drivers’ standings, with the pair almost making contact in the closing stages at the first chicane.
Antonelli took to the gravel on the exit, before recovering and blasting past Russell on the run to the Ascari chicane with four laps remaining.
“It was quite scary during the moment,” he said.
“I thought I could still do the corner but once I went over a bit of gravel I went straight, and I was like maybe I’ve lost my chance, but then luckily we still had the pace and managed to bring it home.”
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/could-never-have-imagined-antonellis-italian-grand-prix-victory-from-p19-a-dream-coming-true.7oXpbc6pFWmhLpIULsFBfG