Sydney Morning Herald - Latest News
· collected 2026-09-06 · by Hannah Kennelly
Kimi Antonelli won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza from 19th place on the grid, becoming the first Italian driver to win in Monza since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966. Antonelli's victory was all the more extraordinary as he overcame his teammate George Russell, who finished second, and other top drivers to take the lead in the final laps of the race. The key moment came when a virtual safety car was triggered, allowing Antonelli to pit and catch up to Russell, who had stayed out on track. This marked one of the most thrilling races of 2026, with multiple dramatic twists and turns throughout.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-06,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Here's a summary of the news story:
Kimi Antonelli wins Italian Grand Prix from 19th place
At the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, Kimi Antonelli, the 20-year-old Mercedes driver from Italy, made history by winning the race from 19th place on the grid. This was his seventh win of the season and extended his lead in the drivers' title race. Antonelli's victory is all the more remarkable given that he started at the back of the grid due to a grid penalty and had to overcome several challenges throughout the race.
Russell finishes second, 66 points behind
Antonelli's teammate, George Russell, finished second in the race but was unable to prevent Antonelli from extending his lead. Russell is now 66 points behind Antonelli with only 10 rounds remaining in the season.
Ferrari suffers a disappointing flop
The Ferrari team suffered a dismal performance at their home grand prix, with Charles Leclerc crashing out on lap two and Lewis Hamilton finishing sixth more than 20 seconds behind Antonelli. The Italian crowd was left disappointed and despondent by the team's performance.
Antonelli becomes favorite to win title
With this victory, Antonelli is now firmly in the lead to become Italy's first Formula One world champion since Alberto Ascari in 1953. He has won seven races this season, while Russell has only two victories. The momentum is clearly with Antonelli as he heads into the final stretch of the season.
This win will go down in Formula One folklore and cement Antonelli's reputation as one of the greatest drivers of all time.
Written for “F1 Monza Grand Prix Results” on 2026-09-07,
grounded in this article and the 7 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
This article does not take a side on a contested political
question, so it has no leaning score. That is an
answer rather than a gap: a match report or a rescue can be warmly
or critically written without being left or right, and scoring it
anyway is how approval of a subject gets recorded as a political
position.
No political leaning scored for article 5751 · logged 2026-09-06
Kimi Antonelli started the Italian Grand Prix in 19th place, marooned at the back of the grid.
asserted
Antonelli → start → grid
But the 20-year-old crossed the finish line first, fighting off his teammate and rival George Russell to win his home race - in one of the most thrilling races of 2026.
asserted
old → cross → 2026
Russell settled for second, while a surging Max Verstappen fought off Oscar Piastri to snatch third after an extraordinary battle.
asserted
Verstappen → settle → battle
F1 commentator David Croft summarised the cinematic ending perfectly saying: “You can’t script things like that.”
asserted
You → summarise → that
Exhilaration for Antonelli who became the first Italian to win in Monza since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966.
asserted
who → become → 1966
Horror for George Russell who endured a see-saw battle with his teammate only to lose his lead in the final three laps of the race.
asserted
who → endure → race
And lastly, bitter disappointment for Australian Oscar Piastri who found himself in podium contention, but was unable to challenge Verstappen for third and was overtaken by teammate Lando Norris in the dying seconds of the last lap.
asserted
who → find → lap
He ultimately finished fifth.
asserted
He → finish → ?
Wiping tears from his eyes on the podium, Antonelli was lost for words.
asserted
Antonelli → wipe → words
I could never have imagined to be here today.
uncertain
I → imagine → ?
We managed to pull it off, and I am really happy,” he said in a post-race interview.
asserted
he → manage → interview
To put Antonelli’s achievement in perspective, only John Watson, from 22nd at the 1983 United States Grand Prix, has won from a lower grid spot.
asserted
Watson → put → spot
The Autodromo Nazionale Monza, affectionately dubbed the Temple of Speed, boasts some of the best overtaking spots on the F1 calendar.
asserted
Monza → dub → calendar
Shaped like a boot, the 53-lap circuit is 5.793km and starts with a long straight and a hard-breaking chicane for Turns 1 and 2.
asserted
circuit → shape → Turns
Claiming his maiden pole, Pierre Gasly was hoping to recreate history six years ago when he won the Monza Grand Prix – his only race win.
asserted
he → claim → Prix
But Gasly didn’t have the pace to challenge the Mercedes, and Russell quickly snatched the lead and looked likely to clinch an easy race win.
asserted
Russell → have → win
But then came the crash.
asserted
crash → come → ?
Charles Leclerc suffered a monster shunt slamming into the barriers in the first few laps of the race.
asserted
Leclerc → suffer → race
The carnage sent the devastated Ferrari fans into hysterics and also triggered a 30-minute delay as officials rushed to repair the barriers.
asserted
officials → send → barriers
The crash allowed Antonelli to fight his way up the grid, and also created an opportunity for Oscar Piastri.
The two Mercedes duelled for the lead, see-sawing back and forth.
asserted
Mercedes → allow → lead
However, a pivotal moment happened after Lance Stroll triggered a virtual safety car, allowing Antonelli to pit.
asserted
Antonelli → happen → car
The Silver Arrows chose to keep Russell out, making him a sitting duck and allowing his younger teammate to catch him in the final moments of the race.
asserted
teammate → choose → race
Russell was polite during his post-race interview, but admitted he was surprised by the strategy.
asserted
he → admit → strategy
“I thought we were both going to stay out, I was surprised to see him pitting,” Russell said.
asserted
Russell → think → ?
McLaren teammates Norris and Piastri also bristled during the race and came close to a collision.
asserted
Norris → bristle → collision
Norris attempted to overtake Piastri, but the Australian held his line.
asserted
Australian → attempt → line
“He pushed me off track,” Norris said over the radio.
asserted
Norris → push → radio
Piastri was subsequently reminded by McLaren engineers to ensure there was “clean racing”.
asserted
Piastri → remind → engineers
The Australian is desperately craving another podium this season.
asserted
Australian → crave → podium
His last podium appearance was at the Miami Grand Prix in May where he finished third.
uncertain
he → finish → May
For now, Piastri will have to wait.
asserted
Piastri → have → ?
