Antonelli wins Italian GP from 19th on grid — SkimNews
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- Kimi Antonelli won the Italian GP from 19th on the grid — the second-lowest starting position to win in F1's 76-year history — beating teammate and championship rival George Russell, who started from the front row.
- The victory was Antonelli's 7th of his second F1 season, extended his championship lead to 66 points (a joint season-high), and ended a 60-year wait for an Italian driver to win their home Grand Prix.
- Sky Sports pundits Martin Brundle and Nico Rosberg effusively praised the drive, with Brundle dubbing Antonelli "King Kimi" and 2016 world champion Rosberg calling it "just unheard of" for a 20-year-old in only his second F1 season.
- Toto Wolff said he had sensed a "special moment" was possible, telling Sky Sports "Kimi ... is going to walk over water here in Monza," and compared his traffic-overtaking ability to Lewis Hamilton's racecraft.
- A lap-2 red flag for Charles Leclerc's crash had already lifted Antonelli to 12th before the restart, and a well-timed Virtual Safety Car later let him switch to fresh mediums while Russell was stuck on worn hards.
- The Monza weekend had already produced an upset when Pierre Gasly — never previously on pole in 190 F1 starts — took surprise pole in qualifying but faded in the race.
Why it matters: Antonelli's seventh win of the season pushes his championship lead to 66 points while beating teammate and title rival Russell, who started from the front row. Winning from the second-lowest grid position in F1 history also ends a 60-year Italian drought at Monza, cementing the 20-year-old as Mercedes' lead driver going into Madrid.
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