Formula One's trip to Monza always promises drama, and this year's Italian Grand Prix delivered in full. It produced one of the most extraordinary results in recent memory, along with a home race Ferrari will want to forget. 

Few venues carry the same weight as Monza, where the passionate tifosi turn every session into a spectacle of its own. That made it all the more painful for Ferrari when their home race fell apart within seconds of the lights going out. 

With the championship battle heating up as the season enters its final stretch, the stakes at Monza felt higher than usual. The race lived up to that, with a stunning fightback at the front and chaos further down the order. 

Here are five winners and five losers from an extraordinary Italian Grand Prix weekend, according to the list published by Formula One on their website on September 7th, written by Lawrence Barretto. 

5 Winners from the Italian Grand Prix 

1. Kimi Antonelli 

Kimi Antonelli produced a stunning drive, recovering from 19th on the grid to win in just 18 laps, holding off teammate George Russell for his seventh victory of the season. 

It made him the first Italian to win at Monza since 1966, and his fightback ranks as the second-lowest winning grid position in F1 history. The win stretched his championship lead to 66 points over Russell, with Hamilton a further 10 points back in third. 

2. Mercedes 

Mercedes claimed their first one-two finish since China, with Antonelli holding off a hard-fought challenge from Russell for the win. It was also their first driver on the Monza podium since 2022. 

The result moved Mercedes 122 points clear of Ferrari in the constructors' standings, with nine races and 402 points still up for grabs.

3. Max Verstappen 

Despite an unhappy Max Verstappen struggling with car balance and deployment issues all weekend, he still fought his way onto the podium with a string of sensational overtakes. It was his first Monza podium that wasn't a win. He won in 2022, 2023 and 2025. This victory also marked the fifth podium finish of the season for Verstappen. 

4. Pierre Gasly 

Pierre Gasly delivered one of the great qualifying laps in recent memory to claim his first career pole, after 191 Grand Prix starts. However, when it came to the race, he couldn't hold that position but raced smartly to finish seventh, the best of the midfield.

 With teammate Franco Colapinto also scoring in ninth, Alpine closed to within 13 points of Racing Bulls in the fight for fifth in the constructors' standings. 

5. Arvid Lindblad

Arvid Lindblad's strong rookie season continued at Monza, reaching Q3 for the sixth straight weekend and racing his way up to eighth, his eighth points finish in the last nine races. 

Though Racing Bulls were edged out by Alpine on pure pace, it was a solid damage-limitation result that kept them fifth in the constructors' standings. 

5 Losers at the Italian Grand Prix

1. George Russell 

George Russell had a strong weekend on paper, his best-ever Monza result and a clear hold on second in the championship. But it was overshadowed by being comprehensively beaten by a teammate who started 17 places behind him.

 With Antonelli stuck at the back due to grid penalties, it was a golden chance to cut into his lead. Instead, Russell fell further back, with an engine penalty of his own likely still to come.

2. Ferrari 

Ferrari arrived at their home race with high hopes after bringing a new power unit upgrade and chassis updates, backed by promising pace in practice and a third and fourth in qualifying. But the race fell apart within seconds. 

 Hamilton and Leclerc clashed through Turns 1 and 2, leaving Hamilton in the gravel and down to tenth before Leclerc crashed out entirely at Parabolica. Hamilton recovered to sixth, but the lost points leave him more than three race wins behind championship leader Antonelli. 

3. Aston Martin

Aston Martin knew Monza's long straights would expose their Honda power unit, and so it proved. They were the slowest team in Q1 for the seventh time this season, with Lance Stroll suffering the 100th Q1 elimination of his career. 

Mechanical failures then ended both cars' races early: Alonso was forced to retire the car, and Stroll had a suspected hydraulic issue, marking the team's fourth double DNF of the season. 

4. HAAS

Haas brought their biggest upgrade package of the season to Monza, with Bearman also benefiting from a Ferrari power unit update that hinted at a return to form. He qualified 12th, his best since China, but couldn't hold that pace and slipped to 14th. 

Ocon struggled with tire wear to finish 16th. It's now seven straight races without a point for Haas, though they still cling to seventh in the constructors' standings. 

5. Liam Lawson

Liam Lawson's second stand-in weekend for Red Bull was tougher than his first at Zandvoort. 

An engine-related grid penalty forced him to start from the pit lane despite qualifying 15th, and although he made good progress early on, contact with Nico Hulkenberg's Audi damaged his front wing and ended any hope of points. 

From Antonelli's fairytale drive to Ferrari's home nightmare, Monza once again lived up to its reputation for delivering the unexpected. With the championship gap widening and just nine races left on the calendar, the pressure is only set to build as F1 heads into the final stretch of the 2026 season. 

Written by

Chionia Libania Colaco