The 2026 Italian Grand Prix was a spectacular showcase, arguably one of the most thrilling races I have had the privilege to call in three decades of commentary, regardless of one's opinion on the new 2026 F1 regulations. Where Monza used to be a circuit of low tyre wear and long, orderly trains of cars, this year it turned into a nonstop battle of overtakes and counter‑attacks, delivering nonstop drama from start to finish. The headline act was the storybook triumph of Italian newcomer Kimi Antonelli. Starting from 19th on the grid, he vaulted into the lead after just 18 laps.
His opening lap combined patience, clever positioning and a well‑timed dash of aggression. He navigated the first chicane cautiously, then slipped past Yuki Tsunoda’s Racing Bull on the outside of the first Lesmo, repeated the move into the Ascari chicane, and finally threaded his car between two rivals on the straight, hugging the edge of the grass.
That blend of precision and bravery set the tone for his charge through the field. Monza has seen only two red‑flag incidents in the modern era, both occurring here – in 2020 and now in 2026 – each triggered by a Ferrari crash at the final Parabolica.
Charles Leclerc, defending against Oscar Piastri’s McLaren, ran a little wide, hit the green strip that houses a drain cover, and lost rear‑right grip. When he corrected the slide, the front tyres suddenly found grip, catapulting the car into the barriers with an estimated 60 g impact.
Leclerc emerged shaken but largely intact, and the team hopes he will be fit for the upcoming Madrid round. After the race, a reliable insider hinted that Ferraris tend to exhibit a brief power surge in such extreme situations, even on the simulator, though this observation did not come directly from the team.
The red flag proved especially costly for George Russell, who had taken a solid lead after overtaking pole‑sitter Pierre Gasly’s Alpine on lap two and was building a comfortable gap. The stoppage erased his advantage and set the stage for a second standing start, allowing everyone – including Russell on a 50‑lap stint on the same tyre compound – to reset their strategies.
Leclerc’s earlier skirmish with teammate Lewis Hamilton added another layer of intrigue. Ferrari entered the weekend with lofty expectations; Hamilton even spoke about the significance of a Monza victory for the Scuderia. In reality, both Ferraris struggled through qualifying, scraping into the top‑10 shoot‑out after a tense Q2. Piastri received a three‑grid‑place penalty for blocking Liam Lawson, while Antonelli was relegated to the back due to power‑unit penalties, leaving the two Ferraris side by side on the second row.
At the first chicane, Hamilton braked early and cut inside of Leclerc, forcing the Italian wide into Turn 2. The two cars ran side by side, with Hamilton staying on the outside. Leclerc, evidently irritated, under‑steered onto the inside line and nudged Hamilton into the gravel.
The stewards deemed it a racing incident, noting that any driver on the outside of Monza’s Turn 2 is at high risk of being forced onto the kerb or into the runoff. Such close‑quarter battles are part of the sport’s fabric, especially at the start when the pack is tightly bunched.
Antonelli’s ascent continued as he sliced through the midfield with remarkable speed, much to Russell’s chagrin. A cat‑and‑mouse duel unfolded between the two Mercedes drivers, each trying to optimise engine and battery deployment for maximum lap time, attack and defence. In the current hybrid era, cars within a second of the leader can activate “overtake mode,” granting an extra half‑megajoule of battery charge and a higher top speed – a crucial advantage on Monza’s long straights. Max Verstappen, despite being marginally slower than the Mercedes on pure pace, kept himself in the mix by exploiting the overtake mode and his Red Bull’s superior straight‑line speed.
He led briefly before the Mercedes pit wall instructed its drivers to stop battling each other and instead focus on building a gap to the Dutchman, keeping him out of overtake mode. The team complied, shifting the strategic focus from intra‑team rivalry to defending against Verstappen.
A virtual safety car on lap 28 to clear Lance Stroll’s stranded Aston Martin offered another strategic twist. Pitting under the VSC at Monza can shave roughly nine seconds compared to a standard pit stop, because the cars are limited to 50 mph in the pit lane while the rest of the field circulates at full speed.
When the race resumed, Russell stayed out on his hard tyres while his teammate Antonelli and Verstappen elected to pit for fresh medium compounds. Russell later claimed he believed both rivals would stay out, a sentiment reflected in the team’s post‑race press release, which described the split strategies as a response to ambiguous track‑position advantages. The outcome left Russell feeling “bruised,” as his lead evaporated and he was forced to defend on worn rubber. Antonelli, on fresh tyres, began clawing back the 15‑second deficit, overtaking the likes of Lando Norris and Hamilton with apparent ease.
Verstappen found himself embroiled in a three‑way tussle with the McLarens, turning the race into a silver‑horse showdown. Antonelli’s lap times improved by more than a second per lap, and he soon closed in on Russell for a second pass attempt. The second overtaking attempt was dramatic.
Russell braked late into the first chicane, running slightly wide, while Antonelli drifted wide in the following left‑hander, encountering loose stones from a surface that had been repaired on Friday but was deteriorating under the race’s heat. Antonelli briefly slid into the gravel but recovered, re‑joining ahead of Verstappen.
He then capitalised on Russell’s momentary error at the Ascari chicane, passing again to the delight of the home crowd. Both drivers had been instructed to race cleanly, with Russell even told to “bring it home.” Whether he deliberately yielded to trigger overtake mode for the final corner is open to interpretation, but his tyres were 50 laps old by the chequered flag, leaving him with limited options. An Italian driver finally won the Italian Grand Prix for the first time in six decades, igniting the stadium with electric excitement.
The most memorable duel at the finish, however, was between the two McLarens: Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Their rivalry, hinted at during qualifying, spilled onto the track as Norris edged past Piastri by just two‑tenths of a second on the final lap, a finish that felt almost personal.
In this era of hybrid power units, the “Theatre of Speed” at Monza might be better described as the “Theatre of Overtaking.” The race was a breathless exhibition of skill, strategy and sheer will. Next up is the Spanish Grand Prix at the brand‑new Madring circuit in Madrid, a venue that promises its own set of challenges.
All sessions will be broadcast live from Friday on Sky Sports F1, and viewers can stream via NOW with no contract and the ability to cancel at any time.