Monza delivered a bittersweet Italian Grand Prix for the home crowd. Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s remarkable victory gave Italian fans a historic reason to celebrate, but Ferrari’s afternoon left a very different feeling after Charles Leclerc crashed out and Lewis Hamilton was left trying to complete 50 laps on the Medium C4 tyre. The contrast between Mercedes’ winning approach and Ferrari’s strategy with Lewis Hamilton became one of the defining themes of the race.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s triumph returned an Italian driver to the top step of the Monza podium for the first time since 1966, when Ludovico Scarfiotti won the Italian Grand Prix for Ferrari. It was a success more than 60 years in the making, achieved after starting from P19 and, crucially, by following what ultimately proved to be the most effective strategic approach on the day.
Italian GP strategy recap after the red flag
Before examining Ferrari’s decisions more closely, it is worth looking at how the different strategies developed across the field. A one-stop race had appeared to be the most competitive solution at Monza, and most drivers effectively followed that route. However, the red flag caused by the Charles Leclerc crash at Monza significantly altered the strategic picture and encouraged many teams to change tyres during the stoppage.
A large part of the grid fitted a new compound under the red flag and then attempted to complete the remaining distance without another pit stop. Drivers who switched to the Hard tyre at least retained some competitiveness towards the end. By contrast, Lewis Hamilton, Yuki Tsunoda and Gabriel Bortoleto faced a far more difficult task after having to cover 50 laps on the Medium C4 compound.
Looking at the one-stop combinations, George Russell, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, Pierre Gasly, Arvid Lindblad and Franco Colapinto followed a Medium-Hard strategy. Oliver Bearman was the only driver on a Soft-Hard sequence, while Lewis Hamilton and Gabriel Bortoleto went from Soft to Medium. Yuki Tsunoda was the only driver to use a Hard-Medium combination.
The two-stop strategies ultimately looked more logical and, in several cases, faster. Race winner Andrea Kimi Antonelli used a Hard-Medium-Medium sequence, while third-placed Max Verstappen went from Soft to Medium and then Hard.
Outside the points, Nico Hülkenberg and Liam Lawson used Medium-Hard-Medium strategies. Carlos Sainz and Esteban Ocon followed a Soft-Hard-Medium sequence, while Alexander Albon ran Medium-Hard-Soft. Sergio Pérez used Soft-Soft-Medium and Valtteri Bottas completed the race with a Soft-Medium-Soft strategy.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Mercedes make the right strategic call
Monza’s nickname, the Temple of Speed, comes from a circuit layout dominated by extremely long straights and major braking zones. Those characteristics make the Italian Grand Prix a particularly suitable event at which to take power unit penalties, because the circuit also offers drivers genuine opportunities to recover positions through overtaking.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli demonstrated exactly that. Starting from P19, the Italian produced a superb recovery drive that required both pace and precision. The most difficult phase came during the fight with George Russell, a contest Andrea Kimi Antonelli managed impressively apart from an excursion through the gravel only a few laps from the finish. The different way Mercedes handled that intra-team fight also provided a striking comparison with Ferrari’s battle between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
Mercedes also gave Andrea Kimi Antonelli the machinery required to execute the comeback. The fresh power unit, even though it did not feature an ADUO update, provided the performance needed for Andrea Kimi Antonelli to attack when required and work his way past the cars ahead. It was the right combination of a hugely talented young driver and a competitive car.
The decisive strategic element was the additional stop. Andrea Kimi Antonelli took advantage of the Virtual Safety Car to fit another set of Medium tyres, giving him the grip required to recover the positions sacrificed in the pit lane before catching and overtaking George Russell. His historic P19-to-victory recovery at Monza showed just how powerful the combination of outright pace, overtaking ability and strategic flexibility could be.
Ferrari suffers a strategic blackout at Monza
Ferrari, by comparison, almost disappeared from contention. That was not entirely because of the SF-26’s outright performance. While the tyres remained capable of delivering their best, Lewis Hamilton showed that he could fight for fourth position. That may still have been disappointing for Ferrari in front of the Tifosi, but the race pace also suggested that even if Charles Leclerc had remained in contention, beating the Mercedes cars or Max Verstappen would have been extremely difficult.
The bigger concern was how Ferrari responded once the race began to unravel. On major occasions, an unfavourable incident can sometimes appear to hit the Maranello team like a lightning strike, creating confusion across the operation. That was the impression again at Monza.
The opening phase had already become complicated because of the fight between the two Ferrari drivers. The Lewis Hamilton-Charles Leclerc battle at the start created the first moment of disorder before Charles Leclerc’s accident changed the race completely. The crash appeared to result from a lapse in concentration, perhaps influenced by the growing realisation that Ferrari simply did not have the pace required to fight at the very front. Charles Leclerc seemed to switch off, and Ferrari appeared to follow.
From the crash onwards, the Scuderia’s race lost momentum. Lewis Hamilton had started on the Soft tyre, so switching to the Medium compound was the most logical choice at the red flag, particularly considering the problems the SF-26 has experienced with the C3. However, expecting Lewis Hamilton to maintain a genuinely competitive pace all the way to the chequered flag on the Medium C4 was a very different matter.
Why Ferrari should have stopped Lewis Hamilton again
Lewis Hamilton should have made another pit stop. Even a used tyre set could have provided an alternative, while fitting the Hard would at least have allowed Ferrari to discover what pace was available on that compound. Instead, the team chose to leave Lewis Hamilton out while the McLaren drivers were running on Hard tyres.
That decision became increasingly costly as the stint progressed. Lewis Hamilton had been competitive when his tyres were still performing, but asking the Mediums to survive 50 laps inevitably made his task significantly more difficult. Ferrari’s broader SF-26 tyre and straight-line speed problems at Monza only reduced the strategic flexibility available to the team.
Choosing not to stop was ultimately a self-inflicted strategic blow. Ferrari had alternatives available and could have attempted something different rather than accepting the inevitable performance decline from an exceptionally long Medium stint. After an already difficult home Grand Prix, it was a disappointing way for the race to end.
Pirelli explains the Italian GP tyre behaviour
As usual, Pirelli Motorsport Director Dario Marrafuschi provided the tyre supplier’s assessment of the race and confirmed that all three compounds had been realistic strategic options.
“We expected all three compounds to be viable options for the race and that proved to be the case. The teams had the opportunity to adopt different approaches, and the variety of compounds at the start demonstrated that. Those who switched quickly to the Hard or Medium were able to complete most of the race distance without difficulty because the level of degradation was extremely low. Even during the most intense phases, with numerous overtakes and a few lock-ups, there were no significant problems in terms of wear. There were some instances of graining, but they affected some teams more than others.”
Dario Marrafuschi continued: “Overall, the behaviour of the entire range proved very positive. The drivers were able to push throughout the race, encouraging close battles and numerous overtakes. Congratulations to Kimi Antonelli who, after climbing through the field from P19, managed to take victory with an extraordinary comeback. He completed 26 overtakes and took advantage of a Virtual Safety Car to fit a new set of Medium tyres, which allowed him to catch and overtake his team-mate before the chequered flag. His success returned an Italian driver to the top step of the Monza podium sixty years after the last time.”
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