Antonelli turns P19 into Monza magic in historic Italian GP win

September 8 ------ KIMI Antonelli started his home Grand Prix with almost everyone in front of him in the grid. He finished it with an entire nation behind him. The 20-year-old Italian delivered one of the most remarkable drives Formula 1 has ever seen storming from 19th on the grid to win the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in a sensational comeback that ended Italy’s 60-year wait for a home winner.

Antonelli beat Mercedes teammate and championship rival George Russell by 3.857 seconds, with Max Verstappen completing the podium, to become the first Italian to win the Italian Grand Prix since Ludovico Scarfiotti did so for Ferrari in 1966. And in completing the P19-to-P1 recovery, Antonelli also made F1 history as the first driver ever to win a Grand Prix from 19th on the grid. "Unbelievable, I'm so happy and I could never have imagined to be here today but we managed to pull it off and I'm really happy. It's a dream coming true," he said.

It was a race for the ages, delivered on the sport’s most sacred stage. Antonelli had been condemned to the back end of the field by a power unit change, but whatever disadvantage Mercedes feared quickly disappeared once the lights went out.

The championship leader carved through the field with a mixture of raw speed and calculated aggression, and by the time the race settled into its decisive stages, the impossible had become increasingly plausible: Antonelli was chasing down Russell for victory.

A Virtual Safety Car come Lap 27 ultimately swung the strategic battle in his favor. Antonelli pitted for fresh medium tires while Russell stayed out on used hard compounds, leaving the younger Mercedes driver with the pace advantage as the closing laps approached. Antonelli first got past Russell on Lap 18, briefly lost the position, then spent the remainder of the afternoon hunting his teammate down once more.

He had his first real chance with five laps remaining, diving toward Russell into the first chicane before running wide and putting all four wheels through the gravel. For a moment, Monza held its breath. Antonelli recovered, regrouped and came back for another shot, finally making the decisive move stick between Lesmo 2 and Ascari on Lap 50 of 53 before pulling clear to seal a victory that will live in Italian motorsport lore.

Russell had to settle for second, while Verstappen completed the podium in third after another aggressive drive of his own. McLaren’s Lando Norris finished fourth ahead of teammate Oscar Piastri, while Lewis Hamilton salvaged sixth for Ferrari on a disastrous home afternoon that saw Charles Leclerc crash out on the second lap.

Pierre Gasly, whose stunning maiden pole position had been the story of Saturday, slipped to seventh, followed by Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad, Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Yuki Tsunoda, who rounded out the top 10. The win also carried enormous implications for the championship.

Antonelli extended his total to 267 points, opening a commanding 66-point advantage over Russell, who sits second on 201. Hamilton remains third with 191 points, while Norris and Leclerc complete the top five in the Drivers’ Championship. Mercedes, meanwhile, strengthened its grip on the Constructors’ Championship with 468 points. But the numbers almost feel secondary after what unfolded at the Temple of Speed as Antonelli arrived at Monza needing to limit the damage after being sent all the way down to 19th. Instead, he turned a penalty into perhaps the defining drive of his young career to date.

Source: spin.ph