Kimi Antonelli made F1 history at the 2026 Italian GP, brilliantly winning the race after starting from 19th the on grid following a change of power unit in his Mercedes ahead of the weekend.
The young Italian had already made significant progress as the race was halted on lap two for Charles Leclerc’s big accident at the Parabolica, already running 12th after three laps after starting on the hard tyres.
The red flag meant Antonelli switched onto the medium tyres to comply with the rules that say a driver must run at least two different tyre compounds during a race. On the yellow-walled tyres, Antonelli made lightning progress through the field after the restart, and taking the lead from his team-mate George Russell as early as lap 18, before a monumental battle between the two team-mates unfolded for several laps, which the Italian eventually came out on top thanks to the right strategy under the mid-race Virtual Safety Car.
“I will remember forever” – Antonelli’s joy of winning the his home race from the back of the grid
The Italian GP podium is always a special one, but for Kimi Antonelli to win his home race after starting all the way down in 19th place, the young Mercedes driver let out all his joy over the radio, and couldn’t hide his emotions even after the race, saying the fans just add “that little bit extra” emotion that spurred him on to a success he “will remember forever“:
“I think this is the most special podium of the season,” he said in the press conference after the race. “To see all the fans on the straight, it’s just incredible. And then, of course, you know, being at home, it adds that little bit of extra. And, yeah, super, super happy with that.“
When asked if this was the best race of his career, Antonelli was quite philosophical in saying the best one is “yet to come“:
“I mean, the best one has yet to come, but I feel like it was one of the best races I’ve done so far, and one that I will remember forever.
“I think definitely the fans gave that little bit extra to push more.
“For sure, the support has been great this weekend. So definitely, seeing the grandstand cheering every lap, for sure it gave that little bit of extra to push more and to try and do even better to win it.”
Antonelli thought “podium was possible” even before the red flag in 2026 F1 Italian GP
Although he already believed a podium was on the cards even before the early red flag, Antonelli was almost surprised as he “found himself” at the front of the field even before the halfway stage – but the huge battery swings and ‘yo-yo’ racing made it “difficult” for him to break away from his team-mate George Russell and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
At one point, Antonelli’s engineer Peter Bonnington went on the radio to ask for the driver to hold position and stop the ‘yo-yo’ effect in order for them to get a gap on Verstappen – and that was only effectively stopped when Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin came to a halt at the first turn, causing a VSC on lap 28 of the 2026 Italian GP:
“I thought a podium was possible, but then obviously with the red flag I was already P12, and then I knew that I could have had a shot to [win],” he said. “But then I found myself at the front and battling, but it was very difficult to break away, basically impossible.
“So I knew it would have been difficult. Then with the VSC we pitted and then we had to close the gap; then in the end to bring it home, [I’m] very happy with that.”
Antonelli believes Mercedes was “clearly the best team” in 2026 F1 Italian GP, which helped his recovery
The championship leader admitted he “didn’t really think” about other results than winning his home race, such was Mercedes’ underlying relative pace on Sunday at the 2026 Italian GP.
He noted that even his off-track “excursion” with just four laps remaining -after trying to make a switchback move on Russell – didn’t diminish his determination to be on top at Monza:
“Today I didn’t really think about anything else other than trying to win, especially when I saw the opportunity,” he revealed. “I was pushing hard and I had a little excursion off track with the marbles, which was not ideal.
“We were trying to push, trying to make smart overtakes, using the battery wisely, and it worked out.
“But, of course, also the fact that this weekend we were clearly the best team, also that helped to recover.”
