Kimi Antonelli’s stunning home Italian GP victory all but seals first F1 title

Kimi Antonelli’s stunning home Italian GP victory all but seals first F1 title Jump to content

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Kimi Antonelli’s stunning home Italian GP victory all but seals first F1 title

Last updated

06 September 2026 9:29pm BST

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!Kimi Antonelli crowd surfs on fans in Monza

*Kimi Antonelli is bathed in adulation after ending a six-decade long wait for an Italian champion at Monza

Credit

: Clive Mason/Getty Images*

Tom CarySenior Sports Correspondent, at Monza.

Luke Slaterlive updates

Last updated

06 September 2026 9:29pm BST

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The comparison with Jesus was maybe a bit much. But after Kimi Antonelli stormed from 19th on the grid to become the first Italian to win at Monza for 60 years, you knew what Toto Wolff meant.

“I thought one of our two drivers would win – either from \[George Russell who started] second, or Kimi walking on water because he was in Monza,” the Mercedes team principal commented after this extraordinary victory, which all but seals the title for Antonelli even at this early stage of the season. “I felt that yesterday and today. I spoke to Kimi’s father and he also had that feeling about what might be coming.”

You have to say, it was pretty special. Yes, Antonelli benefited from an early red flag after Charles Leclerc careered into the barriers at Parabolica on what was a nightmare day for Ferrari.

> Charles Leclerc crashes out of the Italian Grand Prix! 😱 pic.twitter.com/Jjn3vv3CHV
>
> — Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) September 6, 2026

The 20-year-old also benefited from a perfectly-timed (from his perspective at least) mid-race virtual safety car when Lance Stroll retired his Aston Martin, which allowed Antonelli a cheap stop to switch to fresh mediums while Russell stayed out on used hards. But at some point you just have to take your hat off to the youngster.

Antonelli was irresistible. He had already surged from 19th on the grid to 12th by the time the red flag came out at the end of lap 2. He was up to sixth a couple of laps after the race resumed. And by lap 18 of a 53-lap race, he had passed Russell for the lead for the first time. That is some going.

Having caught up to Russell, the two Mercedes drivers engaged in an entertaining battle for a few laps, the pair of them yo-yoing in and out of the lead before Russell got past Antonelli on lap 23 and managed to make it stick.

But the key moment of the race came on lap 27 when Stroll stopped at the first chicane and the VSC came out. For Antonelli, the decision to switch to fresh mediums was clear. He was going to struggle to make it to the end of the race. Far better to drop a few positions and fight back on fresh rubber.

For Russell, it was far trickier. He was in the lead of the race. He was on hard tyres which he knew could get to the end of the race. And he also had the problem of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who at the time he was struggling to shake off.

Mercedes chose to keep Russell out there. In hindsight, it may have been the wrong decision. Had he stopped at that point, he would at least have stayed ahead of Antonelli, and on the same tyres. By staying out, he kept the lead but found himself relentlessly hunted down by the Italian.

By lap 49, the Italian had caught up to him. Antonelli botched his first attempt at reclaiming the lead, going wide onto the gravel at the first chicane. But he made no mistake one lap later as Russell was once again left licking his wounds.

> Antonelli and Russell battling it out in Monza! 😮 pic.twitter.com/aoZctBn0VQ
>
> — Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) September 6, 2026

Martin Brundle was among those to question Mercedes’ strategy with Russell, suggesting the Englishman needed to speak to his team about it.

“It’s been a very difficult day for George Russell,” Brundle said. “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?’”

But Russell himself did not seem too exercised by it, apparently accepting Wolff’s explanation that Mercedes “did not know at the time” which strategy would work out best. “I didn’t \[consider pitting],” Russell admitted. “I actually thought the guys behind me were going to stay out, but I am sure the team were quite nervous on the pit wall watching our battle and they were probably happy to send us out on different strategies. And when we had Max in the mix, you are covering off both scenarios. Today, Kimi did a great job…”

Behind the two Mercedes, Verstappen battled to third, ahead of the McLarens of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Then came a frustrated Hamilton, who lost ground at the start following contact with Leclerc. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, who claimed a shock pole position on Saturday, finished seventh six years to the day after his equally shock win here for AlphaTauri in 2020.