![Antonelli Wins Monza: Italy Ends Its 60-Year Wait](https://cdn.slatesource.com/4/3/a/43aa8035-d4b1-485b-897b-2171d8ea7e58.webp) # Antonelli Wins Monza: Italy Ends Its 60-Year Wait - [Made in Slatesource](https://slatesource.com/@steph/antonelli-wins-monza-italy-ends-its-60-year-wait) - By [Steph](https://slatesource.com/@steph) - Created on Sep 9, 2026 ## 19th on the Grid, First on the Podium Kimi Antonelli started the 2026 Italian Grand Prix from 19th place because of a power unit penalty, was not expected to score points, and crossed the line first. He is 20 years old, born in Bologna, 90 kilometres from Monza. No Italian driver had won their home race since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966, a drought of exactly 60 years. Antonelli ended it. Starting position 19th is the second-lowest from which any driver has won a Formula 1 race in the history of the championship. He now leads George Russell by 66 points, up from 59 before Monza. Seven wins, six poles, ten fastest laps, fourteen podiums in his debut season. He would be the youngest world champion in F1 history if the title holds. Drivers Championship leader Antonelli (Mercedes) 285 pts P2 George Russell (Mercedes) \-66 points P3 Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) \-76 points P4 Lando Norris (McLaren) \-96 points P5 Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 5 podiums, 0 wins in 2026 Constructors leader Mercedes. Hamilton P6 Ferrari's only points at Monza. Rounds remaining 10 ## Three Things That Had to Go Right, and All Three Did An early red flag, triggered by Charles Leclerc's crash at the first chicane, reset the race and erased the gap Antonelli had to close from the back. He moved from 19th to the front group by lap 16, between restarts, and was already fighting for position before pit strategies separated the leaders. On lap 29, Lance Stroll stopped his Aston Martin and brought out a Virtual Safety Car. Antonelli and Verstappen pitted from sixth and seventh, taking fresh medium tyres while race leader Russell stayed out on worn hard compounds. They re-emerged with a 15-second deficit but, on superior rubber, made it back to Russell's tail by lap 46. Antonelli ran wide at the first chicane on lap 50, touching gravel, and briefly appeared to have lost his chance. He recovered and passed Russell on the run to Ascari three laps later, the move that ended the 60-year wait. [Race report: F1.com official Monza 2026](https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/antonelli-beats-russell-to-italian-grand-prix-win-with-stunning-comeback-drive.15WtFjeE4drdeO88t2?utm_source=slatesource) > Unbelievable. I could never have imagined to be here today but we managed to pull it off. It's a dream coming true. ## Sixty Years Is a Long Time to Wait Ludovico Scarfiotti won the 1966 Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari, leading home teammate Mike Parkes in front of a crowd that had not seen an Italian driver triumph at Monza since Alberto Ascari in 1952. Scarfiotti's win was his only Grand Prix victory. He died in 1968, aged 34, in a hillclimb accident. Between 1966 and Sunday, 59 editions of the Italian Grand Prix were held. Italian drivers started from pole five times. None of them won. Mario Andretti, born in Italy but racing as an American, won at Monza in 1978, a footnote most Italians decline to count. The 2026 race was the 77th edition. The gap between Scarfiotti's win and Antonelli's is longer than the entire history of the World Championship prior to 1966. > He kept his head down, took no risks at the beginning with the restart, then one by one, one by one. I must say: an amazing drive. ## What Antonelli Said Next: A Warning Antonelli was asked, post-race, whether his Monza form was as good as it gets. His answer was not the usual deference. "The best one has yet to come," he said. He has ten races remaining to close out a championship that, entering the season, he was expected to contend for in 2027, not 2026. Russell is 66 points behind and has won twice this year. Hamilton is 76 back with a Ferrari that visibly struggled at Monza, Leclerc retiring, the team's only points scored by Hamilton in sixth. Norris and McLaren are 96 behind after upgrades that looked threatening in Hungary failed to carry through to Monza. The title is Antonelli's to lose. He has not yet finished lower than sixth in any race he completed this season. [FIA official result: Antonelli wins the 2026 Italian Grand Prix](https://www.fia.com/news/f1-antonelli-storms-19th-grid-take-sensational-home-win-monza-ahead-russell-and-verstappen?utm_source=slatesource)