Max Verstappen wins Italian GP ahead of Lando Norris

Dominika Jordan
Sep 7, 2025, 10:27 AM ET

Formula 1 World Champions: A legacy of racing legends

Lewis Hamilton, 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix. Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1/Mercedes-AMG

Verstappen dominates Monza as McLaren team orders hand Norris P2 over Piastri — Italian Grand Prix 2025 F1 race report and results

Max Verstappen delivered a commanding Italian Grand Prix victory on Sunday at Monza, converting pole into his third win of the 2025 Formula 1 season and finishing 19 seconds clear of the McLaren duo. In the F1 Italian GP results, Lando Norris took second after a late team-orders shuffle with teammate Oscar Piastri, who completed the podium.

Race start and early lead battle

The race ignited from the lights. Verstappen and Norris ran side by side down the main straight at the Formula 1 Italian GP in Monza, with the Red Bull driver skipping the first chicane to retain the lead. To avoid a penalty, Verstappen yielded the spot at the start of Lap 2, then swiftly attacked again and reclaimed P1 within a handful of laps—after which he was never headed.

From there, Verstappen managed the pace with metronomic consistency, pitting earlier than both McLarens to cover any undercut threat and steadily extending his margin. Repeated radio messages urged caution rather than risk, and the world champion duly cruised to the checkered flag in this Monza F1 race report highlight.

McLaren team orders shape the podium

The afternoon was far more complicated at McLaren. A slow stop for Norris during the sole round of pit stops allowed Piastri, who had been running third, to emerge ahead. Because the team had agreed over the radio to pit Piastri a lap earlier than Norris, McLaren later instructed Piastri to hand the place back to his teammate. Piastri questioned the call but complied in a cleanly executed swap, after which the pair were free to race to the finish—an Italian Grand Prix team orders controversy that shaped the final F1 results.

Piastri’s third place keeps him atop the standings, though his advantage over Norris shrinks from 34 to 31 points—still bolstered by Norris’s retirement at last weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix. It’s a key F1 Drivers’ Championship standings update following the Italian GP.

Ferrari and Mercedes results

Ferrari’s hopes of a home rostrum fell short as Charles Leclerc finished fourth, a few seconds adrift of the podium fight. George Russell logged a tidy drive to fifth for Mercedes, with Lewis Hamilton recovering from a five-place grid penalty to take sixth and secure a solid double-points haul for the Silver Arrows in the Italian GP results.

Midfield highlights

Alex Albon produced one of the drives of the day, turning a difficult Saturday into seventh for Williams. Rookie Gabriel Bortoleto banked eighth for Kick Sauber, while Mercedes prospect Kimi Antonelli salvaged ninth despite a five-second penalty for erratic driving. Isack Hadjar completed the top 10 after an impressive charge from a pit-lane start in this Monza race.

Further back, Carlos Sainz (Williams) and Ollie Bearman (Haas) just missed out on points after a late wheel-banging skirmish at the Roggia chicane. Yuki Tsunoda brought the second Red Bull home ahead of Racing Bulls teammate Liam Lawson. Esteban Ocon received a penalty for forcing Lance Stroll wide and finished 15th, with Alpine teammates Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto enduring a quiet run to 16th and 17th.

Aston Martin woes

Aston Martin’s day unraveled in the closing stages as Stroll faded from the points and Fernando Alonso retired with an apparent suspension failure. Nico Hülkenberg’s race never began after a hydraulics issue left the Sauber driver a non-starter.