Formula 1

Kimi Antonelli wins dramatic Italian GP from Russell and Verstappen

Fraser Masefield
1 month ago
6 min read

Kimi Antonelli won an incident packed Italian Grand Prix to beat teammate George Russell and Max Verstappen after Charles Leclerc suffered a huge crash on lap 2.


In doing so and starting from the back of the grid due to an engine change, Antonelli became the first Italian to win his home grand prix since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966.

It was also the biggest comeback win in terms of grid places since John Watson at Long Beach in 1983.

“I did not expect this,” said Antonelli afterwards.

“Yeah. Unbelievable. I’m so happy and I could have never imagined to be here today, but, you know, we managed to pull it out.”

For Russell, who has endured a number of misfortunes this season, it will have been yet another head scratcher.

And there seems nothing he can do to stop the relentless march of his young teammate.

“Huge congrats to Kimi, of course. Incredible result from him,” said Russell.

“When I looked on the leaderboard at the beginning, I saw he was already in sort of P5, P4. I knew straight away he was going to be in a mix.

“So, yeah, huge congrats to him. It was looking like a pretty strong race from us.

“And then I was just struggling with the tyres towards the end.

“Obviously, we did the whole race on that one hard tyre. So, yeah, I would take it it’s been more positive than it was pre summer break, and that’s what I needed to try and achieve.

“But of course, I would have loved to have been P1 today.”

George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team, 2026 in Monza, Italy. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

THE TALE OF THE RACE

The major talking point before the race was the incredible first pole position from Alpine’s Gasly, the Frenchman attempting to win a second grand prix at Monza six years after his triumph for Alpha Tauri.

When the tyre blankets came off, it was an interesting mix of strategies, the front row opting for medium tyres with the Ferraris and Verstappen on the soft compound – the McLarens of Piastri and Norris also on the mediums.

Antonelli, starting from the back of the grid after an engine change penalty, was one of only three drivers to go for the hard compound to go long on the opening stint.

And it was Gasly who had the perfect start, leading from Russell as the Ferraris made contact behind – Leclerc pushing Hamilton wide into the gravel and costing his teammate places.

It didn’t take Russell long to get past and into the lead, streaming past Gasly on the home straight as Leclerc piled on the pressure behind.


LECLERC CRASH LEADS TO FREE TYRE CHOICE

A flying Verstappen then charged past for third before huge drama – Leclerc suffering a huge accident, going backwards into the barrier at Parabolica before thankfully emerging unscathed.

Upon resumption, it was Russell who again led the field from Gasly and Verstappen but with a free choice of tyres.

Russell and Gasly opted for hards, with only Verstappen and Hamilton going for mediums.

With the Alpines dicing for second, a mistake from Colapinto let Verstappen into second as Antonelli charged past Norris for sixth position and now with a realistic chance of not only a podium but victory.

MERCEDES PLAY THE TEAM GAME – OR DO THEY?

As always, it would be tyre strategy that would ultimately decide the outcome of the race.

The medium compound seemed the answer, Verstappen making the move for second past Gasly and then into the lead passing Russell on lap 12.

A topsy turvey battle ensued, Russell, Antonelli and Verstappen vying for position before the home favourite sensationally led the race on lap 18.

The Mercedes duo then played an intriguing game of cat and mouse, eking out an advantage over Verstappen and swapping the lead hand over fist.

Antonelli and Verstappen were the first of the big hitters to pit, swooping in for a fresh set of medium and hard tyres respectively under Virtual Safety Car.

It was a blow for Russell, who stayed put on his Pirelli hards, hoping they lasted the race with a 15 second gap.

“After the second restart, I was up there and I knew I could have had a shot for the win. So, yeah, definitely I believed in it, especially when I was behind George,” reflected Antonelli.

“But it was really difficult to break away.

“But, yeah, again, you know, we pitted and he stayed out and he struggled a bit with his tires at the end while, you know, we pressed the tyres, I was able to increase the pace and, yeah, managed to win it.”

A FRANTIC FINISH

Still the drama wasn’t over, and with Antonelli catching Russell at a second a lap it led to a frantic finale.

Even a final venture into the gravel for the Italian didn’t prove costly, and he cruised home for a historic victory.

“Yeah, it’s a dream coming through,” added Antonelli.

“And what an incredible day. And couldn’t do it without my team, my family, and everyone who supports me.

“Still a few races to go, so we’re going to keep our heads down. But now we’re going to enjoy the day.”

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Fraser Masefield

Fraser is a sports and motorsports editor with over 25 years experience. The former head editor of WilliamsF1, BMW Motorsport, Jaguar Racing and Virgin Media, he has also worked for Autosport, ESPNF1 and Eurosport amongst others.

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