Reported

Antonelli faces grid penalty at Italian Grand Prix

Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli will start from the back of the grid at Monza due to an engine change, potentially impacting his championship lead.

By Eero Lahtinen·2026-09-04·392 words

Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli will start the Italian Grand Prix from the back of the grid after exceeding his permitted power unit component allocation, a development reported by Crash.net and BBC Sport. This penalty at his home race provides an opportunity for his championship rivals to reduce his significant advantage in the standings.

Antonelli currently leads the drivers' championship with 219 points, 59 points ahead of his Mercedes teammate George Russell, who sits in third place with 160 points. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton is second with 169 points. This grid drop in Monza could significantly affect Antonelli's quest for victory at the Circuit Autodromo Nazionale Monza, where McLaren's Lando Norris arrives with momentum following two consecutive victories in Hungary and the Netherlands.

Ferrari's Home Race Aspirations

Ferrari aims for a strong showing at their home event, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton seeking a memorable win for the Tifosi. The team will field its SF-26 cars in a special Michael Schumacher tribute livery, as reported by Crash.net. Ferrari also anticipates introducing its next ADUO engine upgrade alongside aerodynamic developments, hoping these modifications will boost their performance on the high-speed circuit.

Junior Categories Prepare for Monza

The Formula 2 and Formula 3 support races will also take place this weekend, with F3 entering its penultimate round. Motorsport Week reported that the F3 qualifying session will be split into two groups, similar to the Monaco Grand Prix format, to mitigate the significant slipstream effect at Monza. Additionally, an extra DRS zone has been added for the junior categories between Turns 10 and 11, potentially creating more overtaking opportunities. Mattia Colnaghi, an F3 rookie, reflected on the importance of the tow at Monza but expressed confidence that the two-group qualifying system would improve the session.

Driver Changes and Schedule

Red Bull's Isack Hadjar will miss his second consecutive race due to a wrist injury, with Liam Lawson continuing to deputise, according to BBC Sport. Yuki Tsunoda will again fill Lawson's seat at Racing Bulls. The 2026 Italian Grand Prix marks the 13th round of the Formula 1 season and kicks off a demanding schedule of 11 races over 14 weeks. The first practice session is scheduled for Friday, September 4th, at 13:30 Finnish time, as confirmed by Crash.net. BBC Sport will provide comprehensive radio commentary and post-race analysis for UK viewers.

Status And Sources

This story is labelled Reported, which means a newsroom we cite carries this but the people involved have not confirmed it. The rules behind those labels are in the editorial policy, and the desk that published it is Eero Lahtinen.

Written from the following reporting. Each link goes to the newsroom's own page, not to an aggregator:

• Crash.netcrash.net
• Motorsport Weekmotorsportweek.com
• BBC Sportbbc.co.uk
• RaceFansracefans.net

Eero Lahtinen

Formula 1 Contributor · Tampere, Finland

Eero Lahtinen lives in Tampere, Finland, and works as a structural engineer for a bridge consultancy. His evenings and weekends are often spent in a shared workshop, where he restores 1970s Nordic motorcycles. The smell of oil and metal is familiar to him. He approaches his hobbies with the same methodical focus as his work.

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