Monza, September 6, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Kimi Antonelli produced a stunning comeback at his home Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, charging from 19th on the grid to claim victory at Monza after overtaking Mercedes teammate and title rival George Russell in the closing stages.
Antonelli had been forced to start near the back after taking a power-unit penalty, but the Italian delivered a series of strong overtakes to climb through the field. A Virtual Safety Car period also worked in his favour, allowing him to pit for fresh medium tyres while Russell remained on used hard tyres.
The contrasting tyre strategies proved decisive as Antonelli steadily closed the gap to Russell in the final stages. He briefly ran through the gravel while attacking his teammate but recovered to secure a remarkable victory over 53 laps at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza.
Russell finished second, around four seconds behind, while Red Bull’s Max Verstappen took third after a determined drive featuring several bold overtakes.
Lando Norris finished fourth after a closely fought battle with McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton was sixth, while Charles Leclerc retired after a heavy crash at the final corner on the second lap.
Pierre Gasly, who had stunned the field by taking pole position in qualifying, finished seventh after struggling to maintain his pace in the race. Arvid Lindblad, Franco Colapinto and Yuki Tsunoda completed the points-paying positions.
The result marked a dramatic turnaround for Antonelli, who entered the weekend as championship leader but saw his grid position drop from seventh to 19th because of the power-unit penalty.
Russell had secured pole ahead of Gasly, while Piastri, who initially qualified third, was handed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Liam Lawson in Q2. The penalty promoted Leclerc and Hamilton to the second row and moved Verstappen to fifth.
Lawson was subsequently required to start from the pit lane after changes were made to his Red Bull’s rear wing under parc ferme conditions. Fernando Alonso also started from the pit lane following power-unit changes after qualifying.
The race began with Gasly making a clean getaway into the first chicane. Behind him, Leclerc and Hamilton went side by side, with Hamilton appearing to be forced onto the gravel. Verstappen and Piastri also narrowly avoided contact, with Verstappen emerging ahead.
Antonelli’s victory capped a remarkable recovery drive and strengthened his position in a fiercely contested championship battle.
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