F1 2026 Italian Grand Prix: Antonelli Triumphs at Monza as Mercedes Secures a Double Podium

The 2026 Italian Grand Prix produced one of the most dramatic races of the Formula 1 season, with the lead changing hands repeatedly during a thrilling 53-lap contest at Monza.

Mercedes' young Italian driver Kimi Antonelli eventually claimed victory at his home race after recovering from deep in the field and fighting his way to the front. George Russell finished second to give Mercedes a double podium, while Max Verstappen completed the top three.

Ferrari suffers a nightmare start at home

Pierre Gasly made a strong getaway from pole position and held the lead through the opening corner. Behind him, however, Ferrari's home race immediately took a difficult turn.

Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton made contact approaching the first corner. Hamilton was forced wide and dropped as far as eighth, telling his team over the radio that Leclerc had pushed him off the track.

Gasly managed to remain ahead for the opening lap, but George Russell quickly began applying pressure. The Mercedes driver used the outside line to make a bold move on the second lap and took the lead.

Max Verstappen also moved past Leclerc to claim third, but Ferrari's problems were about to become much worse.

Under pressure from Oscar Piastri, Leclerc lost control of his Ferrari while defending through a corner. The car spun at high speed and crashed heavily into the barriers.

Leclerc managed to climb out of the wrecked Ferrari, but the amount of debris on the circuit forced the safety car onto the track before the race was eventually suspended with a red flag.

A second start at Monza

After roughly half an hour of repairs and track clearance, Leclerc's damaged Ferrari was removed and preparations for the restart began.

A further formation lap was required after Yuki Tsunoda failed to position his car correctly on the grid.

This time, Russell started from pole. He successfully defended against Gasly into the opening corner, while Verstappen passed Colapinto to move into third.

Antonelli, despite starting from deep in the field, immediately showed strong pace and climbed to sixth. Hamilton also held fourth despite continued pressure from Piastri.

As the race developed, Verstappen passed Gasly at the Parabolica to move into second. Hamilton then used the long Monza straight to overtake Gasly and claim third.

Gasly's pace continued to fade as Piastri and Antonelli also passed him, dropping the Alpine driver to sixth.

Verstappen takes the lead as Antonelli closes in

Verstappen steadily reduced the gap to Russell until the two were separated by just half a second.

The Red Bull driver then made a decisive move into the first corner and took the lead.

But the most important battle was developing just behind them.

Antonelli passed Hamilton to move into fourth and soon overtook Piastri as well, putting himself firmly into the fight for the podium.

Russell refused to let Verstappen escape. Using the speed advantage of the long Monza straight, he passed Verstappen around the middle of the race and reclaimed the lead.

Verstappen was then placed under increasing pressure from Antonelli, who continued to close the gap.

The young Italian eventually made his move and passed his teammate to take the lead. After starting far down the order, Antonelli had suddenly reached the front of his home Grand Prix.

A thrilling battle between the Mercedes drivers

Antonelli's first spell in the lead did not last long. Russell soon responded and moved back ahead.

But Antonelli immediately fought back, using the inside line to regain the position.

The two Mercedes drivers continued exchanging the lead over several laps. Monza's long straights and slipstream effect made it possible for one driver to gain an advantage through a corner before the other responded on the following straight.

Russell eventually moved back in front, but Antonelli stayed close behind.

Mercedes then instructed both drivers to stop fighting each other and concentrate on maintaining a gap over Verstappen.

The race also saw several other major incidents. Fernando Alonso retired with a problem, while Lance Stroll was forced out by a hydraulic failure. Stroll's incident triggered a virtual safety car.

Antonelli and Verstappen used the opportunity to pit and change tyres.

Pit stops reshuffle the order

Antonelli returned to the track in sixth place, with Verstappen just behind him. Russell remained out on track.

The Mercedes driver soon reported that his tyres were becoming badly deformed, but the team told him to continue.

Antonelli immediately began recovering positions with the advantage of fresher tyres and soon climbed back to fourth.

Verstappen also passed Gasly and moved into sixth before beginning his pursuit of Lando Norris.

Using the slipstream along one of Monza's long straights, Verstappen passed Norris and moved into fifth.

At the front, meanwhile, Russell's tyre problems were becoming increasingly serious.

Hamilton drops back as Antonelli attacks again

Hamilton's afternoon became increasingly difficult during the second half of the race.

The Mercedes driver missed a corner and was forced into the run-off area, allowing Antonelli to pass him for fourth.

Hamilton subsequently complained over the radio about the performance of his medium tyres.

Antonelli continued his charge, overtaking Piastri to move into second and once again setting his sights on Russell.

Verstappen also passed Hamilton before battling Piastri for third. Piastri briefly held the position, but Verstappen attacked again and reclaimed third.

With the race entering its final phase, Russell's deteriorating tyres had become Mercedes' biggest concern.

A dramatic final battle

With 10 laps remaining, Verstappen was approximately nine seconds behind Antonelli, while Russell was 4.2 seconds ahead of his teammate.

Antonelli gradually increased his pace and reduced the gap to Russell to around 2.5 seconds.

Mercedes told Russell that it was monitoring the tyre degradation and instructed him to bring the car to the finish.

Antonelli, meanwhile, was closing rapidly.

With only a few laps remaining, he was firmly on Russell's gearbox. On lap 48, the gap between the two Mercedes cars fell to just 0.2 seconds.

Antonelli prepared an attack on the following lap but ran wide into the gravel on corner exit. Russell gained a brief reprieve as the gap increased to around 0.6 seconds.

The young Italian, however, immediately recovered.

Later on the same lap, Antonelli caught Russell again and completed a clean overtaking move to take the lead.

This time, he made no further mistakes. Antonelli gradually opened a gap of around one second and controlled the final stages of the race.

Antonelli rules Monza

Kimi Antonelli crossed the finish line first to win the 2026 Italian Grand Prix.

George Russell finished second, securing a double podium for Mercedes, while Max Verstappen completed the podium in third.

Antonelli's victory was undoubtedly the defining story of the race. Starting from deep in the field, the young Italian fought past one opponent after another, battled Verstappen and Russell, and ultimately overtook his own teammate in the closing stages to win in front of his home crowd.

The result was equally important for Mercedes, which delivered a strong combination of pace and strategy to put both drivers on the podium at one of Formula 1's most iconic circuits.

After a race filled with changing leaders, Ferrari's home disappointment, strategic twists and a spectacular Mercedes duel, the final word at Monza belonged to Kimi Antonelli.