By F1 correspondent Michael Butterworth
BEIJING, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- Kimi Antonelli produced a remarkable comeback from 19th on the grid to win his home Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, passing Mercedes teammate George Russell late in a dramatic race at Monza.
Antonelli took the lead for good from Russell at the Ascari chicane on lap 50 after the two Mercedes drivers had traded places repeatedly earlier in the race.
Max Verstappen finished third for Red Bull, ahead of McLaren's Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, while Lewis Hamilton took sixth for Ferrari.
Antonelli became the first Italian to win his home Grand Prix since Ludovico Scarfiotti in 1966. No Formula One driver had won from as far back as 19th on the grid since John Watson triumphed from 22nd at Long Beach in 1983.
The victory was Antonelli's seventh of the season and extended his championship lead over Russell to 66 points, with Hamilton a further 10 points behind in third.
Mercedes also strengthened its grip on the constructors' championship and now has 468 points, 122 ahead of Ferrari, with McLaren third on 287.
Alpine's Pierre Gasly had claimed a surprise first pole position and initially held off Russell, but the Mercedes driver swept into the lead at the start of lap two.
Moments later, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc crashed heavily at the Parabolica after running wide and losing the rear of his car, causing the race to be halted while barriers were repaired.
Antonelli had already climbed seven places to 12th by the stoppage, which allowed him to discard the hard tires he had started on.
Russell led Gasly and Verstappen at the restart, but Antonelli continued his rapid progress, passing Norris and then Gasly before moving ahead of Hamilton and Piastri to reach third by lap 13.
He caught the leaders soon afterward, beginning a frenetic battle with Russell in which the Mercedes pair repeatedly exchanged first place while Verstappen remained close behind.
Antonelli first took the lead on lap 18 before Russell responded, with the pair trading places several more times as Mercedes attempted to manage their battle.
A virtual safety car following Lance Stroll's retirement on lap 28 changed the complexion of the race. Antonelli and Verstappen pitted while Russell stayed out, leaving Antonelli to fight his way back through traffic.
The Italian quickly dispatched Gasly, Norris, Hamilton and Piastri to return to second and began closing a gap of more than 13 seconds to Russell.
With Russell struggling with tire graining, Antonelli was within striking distance by lap 47. An initial attempt at Turn 1 two laps later sent him briefly through the gravel as Russell defended stoutly, but the Italian recovered before making his decisive move at Ascari on lap 50.
Russell held on for second, with Verstappen third after a race-long battle with Piastri. Norris finished fifth, ahead of Hamilton, Gasly, Arvid Lindblad, Franco Colapinto and Yuki Tsunoda.
The next round of the 2026 season is next weekend's Spanish Grand Prix, which will be held for the first time at the new Madring circuit in Madrid. ■
