Max Verstappen of Red Bull won Formula One’s fastest ever race on Sunday, achieving an Italian double in Ferrari’s backyard, while McLaren’s Oscar Piastri followed team orders, reducing his overall lead to 31 points.
Australian Piastri finished third, trailing teammate Lando Norris after the Briton experienced a slow, late pitstop, emerging behind his title rival despite assurances from the team that he would remain ahead.
Piastri was instructed to relinquish the position and complied, securing third place as Verstappen cruised to victory, winning by a significant 19.2 seconds and claiming his first win since Imola last May.
The race was officially timed at one hour, 13 minutes, and 24.325 seconds, with an average speed of 250.706 kph around the ‘Temple of Speed’.
“The whole weekend, we were on it. It’s super enjoyable to win here,” said Verstappen, celebrating his third success of the season and 66th career victory.
“I could see the pace was good, I just needed to settle in,” added the reigning world champion after temporarily losing the lead to Norris at the chaotic start but quickly reclaiming it.
“I could see the pace was there and quite quickly we were back in the lead. This was an unbelievable weekend.”
The title battle between Piastri and Norris, effectively a two-horse race, remained the focus of attention, with controversy arising after Norris’s pitstop and the team’s decision to swap positions.
Verstappen commented over the car radio when informed about the swap by race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase: “Ha! Just because he had a slow stop?” said the Dutch driver with feigned incredulity.
McLaren apologised to Norris over the radio for the delay.
Charles Leclerc finished fourth for Ferrari, giving the gathered tifosi something to celebrate after both cars crashed out in the Netherlands last weekend, and George Russell was fifth for Mercedes.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton finished sixth in his first appearance at the ‘Pista Magica’ in red Ferrari overalls after starting 10th.
Alex Albon secured a solid seventh place for Williams, with Sauber’s Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto in eighth, Mercedes’ Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli in ninth, and Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar earning the final point.
