Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli won the 2026 Italian Grand Prix at Autodromo Nazionale Monza, charging from 19th on the grid to beat teammate George Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in a 53-lap Temple of Speed classic.
How it was won
Pierre Gasly took a surprise Alpine pole, but the race was shaped early by chaos. On the opening exchanges, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton went wheel-to-wheel; Hamilton ran through the gravel. Soon after, Leclerc lost the Ferrari exiting Curva Alboreto and crashed heavily into the barriers, triggering a red flag. Leclerc walked away unhurt; barrier repairs followed.
Antonelli started near the back after an engine-related grid penalty. By the red-flag stoppage he had already climbed into the midfield. After the standing restart, he carved through on pace—clearing McLarens and then Verstappen—and took the lead from Russell into Turn 1 on Lap 18.
A mid-race Virtual Safety Car (Lance Stroll stopped with a hydraulics issue) flipped strategy: Antonelli and Verstappen pitted for fresh tyres; Russell stayed out on worn hards and inherited the lead.
Antonelli worked back to second, closed Russell down in the final stages, ran wide through the gravel on a Lap 49 attack at the first chicane, then made the decisive pass between Lesmo 2 and Ascari on Lap 50. He pulled clear to the flag in 1:51:15.281.Russell finished +3.857s in a Mercedes 1–2. Verstappen held third after an early lead scrap with Russell. Lando Norris edged Oscar Piastri by 0.197s for fourth; Hamilton recovered to sixth; Gasly faded from pole to seventh. Fernando Alonso and Stroll also retired; Leclerc’s opening-lap crash ended Ferrari’s home hopes for a win.
Results snapshot
| Pos | Driver | Team | Gap / note | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kimi Antonelli | Mercedes | 1:51:15.281 (53 laps) | 25 |
| 2 | George Russell | Mercedes | +3.857s | 18 |
| 3 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | +14.718s | 15 |
| 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren | +19.056s | 12 |
| 5 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren | +19.253s | 10 |
| 6 | Lewis Hamilton | Ferrari | +24.655s | 8 |
| 7 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +27.351s | 6 |
| 8 | Arvid Lindblad | Racing Bulls | +45.136s | 4 |
| 9 | Franco Colapinto | Alpine | +47.353s | 2 |
| 10 | Yuki Tsunoda | Racing Bulls | +58.187s | 1 |
Also classified / DNF (verified): Gabriel Bortoleto 11, Nico Hlkenberg 12, Carlos Sainz 13, Liam Lawson 14, Oliver Bearman 15; Esteban Ocon, Alexander Albon, Sergio Pérez (−1 lap); Valtteri Bottas (−2 laps). Retirements: Lance Stroll (hydraulics), Fernando Alonso (car damage), Charles Leclerc (crash).
Championship note (reported): Antonelli extended his Drivers’ Championship lead over Russell to 66 points after the Monza result.
Purse
Prize / purse figures for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix were not published in the official sources reviewed for this recap; they are omitted here.
History & significance
Monza—“the Temple of Speed”—has hosted the Italian Grand Prix for the vast majority of Formula 1 World Championship seasons since 1950. Antonelli’s home win made him the first Italian driver to win the Italian Grand Prix since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966, according to BBC Sport and Sky Sports reporting. Starting 19th, the drive ranks among the deepest grid-to-win recoveries in F1 history (BBC notes only John Watson’s 1983 Long Beach win from 22nd went further back).
Support races (Monza feature winners)
- FIA Formula 2 Feature: Joshua Duerksen (Invicta Racing) — weekend sweep; Invicta 1–2 with Rafael Câmara. Separate recap:
2026-09-06-f2-monza-feature.md - FIA Formula 3 Feature: Nicola Lacorte (DAMS Lucas Oil) — maiden F3 win on home soil. Separate recap:
2026-09-06-f3-monza-feature.md
Whats next
Formula 1 heads straight into a back-to-back weekend at the new Madring for the Spanish Grand Prix (September 1113, 2026). Follow session times and how to watch via the official Formula 1 race hub.