Kimi Antonelli produced a remarkable recovery drive to win the Italian Grand Prix from 19th on the grid, combining Mercedes’ formidable straight-line performance with an assured display through traffic at Monza. It was a historic day for the Italian driver and another demonstration of the advantage Mercedes currently enjoys, while Ferrari endured a painful home race in which both technical weaknesses and sporting mistakes came to the surface.
Winning a Grand Prix from the penultimate row remains an achievement reserved for exceptional circumstances. At Monza, Antonelli had the machinery to attack relentlessly on the straights, but his speed in traffic and ability to complete difficult passes without losing time were equally important. The result also strengthened Mercedes’ position in both championships as the 2026 season moves into its next phase.
Kimi Antonelli’s Monza comeback from 19th to victory
Antonelli’s victory vindicated Mercedes’ decision over how to handle his grid penalty. Under the characteristics of the new Formula 1 cars, Monza has become particularly favourable for recovery drives, making it an attractive circuit at which to absorb a grid drop. Even so, that does little to diminish what Antonelli achieved.
A recovery towards the leading positions had always appeared possible, but the speed with which he worked his way through the field was striking. Many of his overtakes came on the straights, where he could exploit the strength of the Mercedes Power Unit and the energy-management characteristics of the current regulations, which have made some changes of position comparatively straightforward.
Yet the Italian also had to earn several places under braking. On a number of occasions, Antonelli attacked deep into the braking zone and committed at the apex, completing moves quickly enough that technically difficult overtakes appeared almost routine.
Toto Wolff felt this ability to navigate traffic was where Antonelli made the decisive difference. “The difference today was the way he worked his way through traffic,” the Mercedes team principal explained. “We’ve seen it with other greats in the past, Hamilton did it in some races. When the car and the driver become one, there is nothing that can stop them.”
George Russell duel and tyre strategy open the door
Once Antonelli reached George Russell, the two Mercedes drivers became involved in an extended exchange of positions. Their contest continued until the pit wall intervened, before the Virtual Safety Car altered the strategic picture once again.
Starting on the hard tyre then became an advantage for Antonelli because he still had a fresh second set of mediums available. Mercedes considered stopping him effectively unavoidable after noticing tyre damage on rival cars during a weekend in which graining had also appeared.
Russell did not have the same option because he had already used one of his new medium sets in qualifying. Antonelli, by contrast, emerged on fresh rubber and began producing consistently quick laps, once again highlighting the tyre sensitivity and feel that those working closely with him have repeatedly praised.
His preparation had also been heavily weighted towards Sunday. With Mercedes already knowing he would start from the back, the car had been prepared specifically with the race in mind. Antonelli had even completed a 19-lap run on Friday, giving him substantial long-run preparation before his charge through the field.
Antonelli turns difficult Monza memory into a historic win
The victory carried an additional personal significance. Only a few weeks earlier, Antonelli had explained how deeply his mistake during practice at Monza in 2024 had affected his confidence.
“The Monza accident affected me a lot. It was a moment I was never able to get over last year,” Antonelli recalled. “The fact that I had made a mistake and gone off stayed in my head and slowed me down a lot.”
Winning at the same circuit therefore represented a full-circle moment for the Italian. A weekend once associated with self-doubt has now become one of the defining achievements of his career, and the result leaves him in a position to aim for the biggest prize available.
Why Mercedes was so strong on the Monza straights
Antonelli’s comeback also highlighted just how powerful Mercedes was on Monza’s long straights. The strength of the Brixworth Power Unit was evident throughout the weekend, particularly in the contribution from the internal combustion engine.
With strong combustion-engine output available during the early phase of acceleration, Mercedes did not need to rely as heavily on electrical deployment immediately after corner exit. That allowed more energy to remain available in the battery towards the end of the straight, helping the cars maintain impressive top speed deep into the acceleration zones.
It is an area in which Charles Leclerc had already identified a significant Mercedes advantage over Ferrari at Monza. Ferrari’s own 2026 Power Unit has been under particular scrutiny because modern straight-line performance depends not only on combustion power but also on the way electrical energy is deployed and managed throughout the lap.
Mercedes’ advantage was not solely an engine story. Its low-downforce aerodynamic package also contributed significantly. The specification had been set aside in Belgium, but at Monza it became an important part of the car’s performance and complemented the Power Unit particularly effectively.
Although the Italian circuit remains highly unusual, Mercedes has already demonstrated that it can be competitive away from Monza as well. Further long-awaited upgrades are expected around Malaysia, followed later by the ADUO engine development, strengthening the belief that the Brackley team currently has one hand on both championships.
Max Verstappen returns to the podium as McLaren faces a different weakness
Behind the Mercedes drivers, Max Verstappen returned to the podium with Red Bull. The car was not without problems, particularly with the rear mechanical behaviour, but it remained competitive in an area that mattered enormously at Monza: straight-line speed.
McLaren was weaker in that respect. The deficit was attributed both to aerodynamic factors and to gearbox ratios considered too short for the circuit. That could also create difficulties in Baku, although before then the MCL40 should have the necessary characteristics to be a leading contender in Madrid.
Ferrari pays heavily for mistakes at its home Grand Prix
For the Tifosi, expectations had been high, but the 2026 Italian Grand Prix ultimately exposed several of Ferrari’s weaknesses. The first problem emerged in the way Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc managed their battle at the start.
Hamilton initially attacked Leclerc very aggressively on the inside at the first chicane. Leclerc then responded just as forcefully, pushing his team-mate towards the gravel. The opening-lap fight immediately cost Ferrari valuable track position at a race where execution needed to be close to perfect.
Charles Leclerc’s subsequent accident at the Parabolica prevented Ferrari from properly assessing the potential of his SF-26 over a full race distance. Lewis Hamilton’s result was equally revealing in another respect: despite making the same number of pit stops as George Russell, the British driver finished more than 20 seconds behind the Mercedes.
Ferrari’s straight-line deficit remains a major concern
The central technical issue was again a lack of energy and straight-line speed, linked to the deficit in output from Ferrari’s combustion engine. The problem had already been evident during the weekend, and a detailed examination of Ferrari’s straight-line weakness at Monza underlined how severely the circuit exposed the SF-26.
Fred Vasseur pointed out that Power Unit development requires considerably more time than aerodynamic development. In his view, expecting Ferrari to completely recover its deficit through the two ADUO opportunities available in 2026 would have been unrealistic.
That inevitably raises questions about why Ferrari began the season behind: whether the deficit originated from incorrect design choices or simply from an engine that was not efficient enough. The wider challenge is particularly important because the SF-26 Power Unit performance depends on far more than peak horsepower, with energy deployment and overall system efficiency also crucial under the 2026 regulations.
Ferrari had brought developments to its home weekend, with Charles Leclerc assessing the engine and floor upgrades before the Italian Grand Prix, but Monza ultimately showed that the remaining gap was still substantial.
Madrid offers Ferrari a different test, but questions remain
Madrid should be less punishing than Monza from a Power Unit perspective. However, Zandvoort and Budapest were also expected to place less emphasis on this particular weakness, and Ferrari still finished outside the podium positions at both events.
Vasseur has assured that the Scuderia intends to continue developing the car until the end of the season. The team’s ongoing work can be followed through the latest Ferrari technical analysis, as Maranello attempts to close the performance deficit during the remaining races.
Yet Mercedes’ current technical advantage, combined with its position in the championships, inevitably leaves Ferrari facing a difficult strategic question. Continuing to push the 2026 project until the final races is the chosen path, but after what Monza revealed about the gap at the front, whether that remains the right approach has become increasingly important.
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