Monza Magic for Max Verstappen

Race winner Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen delivered a dominant performance at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, storming to victory for Red Bull ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris in second and Oscar Piastri in third.

“It was a great day for us. Lap 1 was a bit unlucky but after that we were flying,” Verstappen said.

“The car was really enjoyable. I could manage the pace quite well throughout that first stint and we pitted at the right time. With the hard tyres at the end, you can push a bit more, it is more resilient. Fantastic execution by everyone, the whole weekend we were on it. It is super enjoyable to win here.”

From the start Norris and Verstappen went wheel to wheel, with the McLaren forced onto the grass as the Red Bull squeezed him into Turn 1. Verstappen then cut the chicane and handed the place back at the beginning of the second lap, but quickly regrouped. On lap four he swept around the outside of Norris into Turn 1 to reclaim the lead, a move that set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.

Norris admitted he had no answer to Verstappen’s pace.

“I always know it is going to be a good fight with Max and it was (at the start). So enjoyable but just not the speed today of Max and the Red Bull. A tricky one, one of the first few weekends where we are just a bit slower. But still fun, still a good race so I enjoyed it. No idea with the pit stop, I felt like I was there quite a long time. Every now and then we make mistakes as a team and today was one of them. I did everything I could today, I could not do a lot more. I tried to fight against Max. We had a good race and he came out on top. Second was our best result and I need to keep up what I am doing.”

While Norris admitted he lacked the speed to stay with Verstappen at the front, Ferrari’s Sir Lewis Hamilton showed strong pace as he carved his way forward from tenth on the grid.

The seven-time world champion started tenth after serving a five-place grid penalty from Zandvoort, but immediately began moving forward. By lap two he was up to eighth, passing Fernando Alonso for seventh on lap five and sweeping around the outside of Gabriel Bortoleto a lap later for sixth. He would later rise to fifth before settling into sixth place at the flag, salvaging valuable points after a difficult weekend for Ferrari.

Speaking to Sky Sports afterwards, Hamilton reflected on his drive.

“I definitely felt on top of it today and I was really happy with it. I got a really good launch, I got squeezed between a couple of cars so I had to back off but then after that I was really happy with the position I had into Turn One and then Turn Four. After that the overtake and I got really close to George and probably in hindsight we should have probably tried to undercut him at that point. Going long just did not pay off and that is something we will learn from. Otherwise after the penalty to get back to sixth I am really grateful. To be able to have a solid drive like that today in front of the tifosi, it is unbelievable driving here under this banner. I did not deserve to be on the podium today so I will not be going to the podium but I will probably go out to the wall to see the fans. Charles was giving it everything. Max is up there now. We do not have the pace of Red Bull, today they were rapid and we do not have the pace of McLaren. So I think we are fourth, fifth. If we do an exceptional job we can maybe get a podium here or there. There is a chance we can have that but in terms of pure pace we do not have that.”

Further up the order, Piastri and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc swapped places early, with the Australian reclaiming third from the Ferrari on lap six in a carbon copy of Verstappen’s move on Norris.

Piastri admitted it was not a perfect race despite his podium finish.

“A difficult beginning, maybe not my best first couple of laps. We seemed to have pretty good pace compared to Charles, then I had to get past and it was a pretty lonely race from there. Just struggled a bit through the first part of the race. The car was not exactly how I liked. Once the tyres went away, it felt a bit better which is never a great sign. Happy with the points and I will take it.”

The pit stops provided late drama as a slow stop for Norris on lap 47 allowed Piastri to surge past on exit after stopping the lap before. Team orders quickly followed, with McLaren instructing Piastri to give the place back and allow his teammate through, before freeing them to race to the finish. The shuffle ensured Norris retained second place, while Piastri had to settle for third.

The decision by the team to issue that order was understood to be a way of rectifying their mistake in the pit stops, which had caused Norris to lose the place in the first instance.

Behind the podium places, Charles Leclerc took fourth for Ferrari after being unable to keep Piastri at bay. George Russell brought his Mercedes home in fifth, followed closely by Hamilton in sixth after his climb from tenth on the grid. Alex Albon impressed in seventh for Williams with a consistent run, while Gabriel Bortoleto secured eighth for Stake. Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli took ninth despite a five-second penalty, and Isack Hadjar rounded out the points in tenth for Racing Bulls.

Red Bull’s display in Monza hints they may have found another gear, but the true picture will emerge in two weeks’ time when Formula 1 returns to the streets of Baku for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on September 21.

Full race results: https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2025/races/1268/italy/race-result