Max Verstappen emphatically returned to winning ways at Monza, ending a four-month, eight-race victory drought with a commanding triumph in the Italian Grand Prix.
The Red Bull driver, taking just his third win of the 2025 season, reclaimed the lead from Lando Norris after an early wheel-to-wheel battle and never looked back, eventually crossing the line 19 seconds clear of the McLaren pair.
Early Duel at the Front
Polesitter Norris initially seized control after Verstappen cut the first chicane and was instructed by Red Bull to hand back the position at the end of the opening lap.
But the Dutchman struck back on lap four, repassing Norris and checking out at the front. Neither McLaren could match his relentless pace.
McLaren Team Orders Spark Debate
Behind Verstappen, drama unfolded as McLaren wrestled with strategy and fairness between their two title-contending drivers.
Norris looked set for second, only to suffer a slow 5.9-second pit stop that dropped him behind teammate Oscar Piastri, who had pitted earlier with a slick 1.9-second service. McLaren then faced a dilemma: let Piastri keep the place or restore the order.
Eight laps later, the call came: Piastri was instructed to let Norris back through, echoing last year’s Hungarian GP controversy when the pair were also involved in a team-ordered swap.
Piastri questioned the decision over radio — “We said a slow pit stop was part of racing. I don’t really get what has changed” — but ultimately complied, handing Norris second place and trimming the Australian’s championship lead to 31 points.
Team principal Andrea Stella defended the move: “We felt the right thing to do was to go back to the original position and let them race. I want to thank Oscar because he didn’t make it difficult at all.”
Ferrari Fade, Midfield Shines
Ferrari’s early challenge evaporated as Charles Leclerc slipped to fourth, followed by George Russell in the Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton, starting 10th after a penalty, climbed to sixth but could not progress further.
In the midfield, Alex Albon impressed with seventh for Williams, while Gabriel Bortoleto (Sauber) inherited eighth after Kimi Antonelli’s penalty for erratic driving.
Isack Hadjar surged from a pit-lane start to snatch the final point in 10th, a week after his breakthrough Zandvoort podium.
Verstappen Delighted with Return to Form
Verstappen, securing Red Bull’s first Grand Prix win of the post-Christian Horner era, was typically blunt on team radio about McLaren’s switch: “Ha! Just because he had a slow stop?”
Post-race, he was jubilant: “I could see the pace was there and quite quickly we were back in the lead. This was an unbelievable weekend.”
With eight Grands Prix and three Sprints remaining, the title fight remains firmly between McLaren teammates Norris and Piastri — but Verstappen’s return to form could yet add a disruptive twist.
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