Max Verstappen Secures Emilia Romagna GP Victory, McLaren Duo Takes Podium

Max Verstappen delivered a flawless performance to win a dramatic Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, while Lando Norris secured second place ahead of his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.

Starting from second position, Verstappen boldly overtook pole-sitter Piastri around the outside of the first chicane on the opening lap. He then expertly controlled the race from the front.

The Red Bull driver appeared to be cruising towards victory until a late Safety Car compressed the field. However, he comfortably pulled clear again during the final 10 laps. Norris, benefiting from fresher tyres, was able to pass Piastri for the second spot.

Piastri`s bid for victory was hindered by McLaren`s strategy to pit him early, which backfired as he became stuck in traffic. This contrasted with Verstappen and Norris, who were able to significantly extend their initial tyre stints.

Following this result, Piastri`s lead over Norris in the Drivers` Championship is reduced to 13 points, with Verstappen closing within 22 points of the Australian in third. McLaren extended their lead atop the Constructors` Championship to 132 points.

Verstappen commented: “The start itself wasn`t particularly great, but I was still on the outside, the normal line, so I thought, `I`ll try to go around the outside,` and it worked really well.”

“That, of course, unleashed our pace,” he added. “When we were in the lead, the car felt good. I could manage my tyres.”

Verstappen concluded: “Incredibly proud of everyone. It`s been a very important week for us. The car performed exceptionally well.”

Lewis Hamilton achieved a superb recovery, climbing from 12th on the grid to fourth place in his first race in Italy for Ferrari.

The seven-time champion benefited from both the preceding Virtual Safety Car and the subsequent full Safety Car period, executing several overtakes in the final laps to secure his best Grand Prix result with Ferrari.

Alex Albon finished fifth for the second consecutive race. Charles Leclerc, in the other Ferrari, had to cede his position on the final lap after coming under investigation for forcing Albon`s Williams off track during a late duel.

George Russell also suffered from strategic issues, finishing seventh after starting third. It was a disappointing day for Mercedes, made worse when Kimi Antonelli was forced to retire from his home race due to a throttle problem.

Carlos Sainz finished eighth, which helped Williams consolidate their fifth place in the Constructors` standings.

Isack Hadjar continued his impressive rookie campaign by securing ninth place for Racing Bulls, while Yuki Tsunoda made a strong recovery from a pit lane start after a significant qualifying crash to claim the final point for Red Bull.

Verstappen Cruises Clear of Chaos

After securing pole position at a circuit notoriously difficult for overtaking, Piastri initially seemed in complete control, getting a much better start than Verstappen and pulling clear towards the first chicane. However, the Australian appeared overly focused on defending against Russell behind him and left a small gap for Verstappen on the racing line. The Dutchman seized the opportunity, braking later than Piastri to sweep around the outside of the first part of the chicane, gaining the inside line on exit and taking the lead.

Verstappen quickly extended his lead beyond DRS range and was nearly three seconds ahead when McLaren decided to pit Piastri at the end of lap 13.

This early stop for Piastri was a reaction to events behind him, as Leclerc had pitted on lap 10 and was theoretically poised to undercut Norris, who had lost time battling Russell in the initial laps.

Piastri rejoined ahead of Leclerc and other early pitters but found himself stuck in traffic behind drivers who had not yet stopped.

In contrast, Verstappen, Norris, and others who stayed out discovered their tyres entered a better operating window, allowing them to extend their stints and commit to a one-stop strategy.

The lead gap between Verstappen and Norris had stabilized around 10 seconds, but it doubled when Norris pitted at the end of lap 28, just moments before a Virtual Safety Car was deployed for Esteban Ocon`s stopped car.

Piastri, who had climbed back up to third before the VSC, took the opportunity to make his second stop, benefiting from the reduced time loss under VSC conditions compared to a normal race stop. The Australian easily passed Albon upon rejoining to retake third place, but with large gaps to Norris and Verstappen ahead, the finishing order seemed decided.

However, Antonelli`s late throttle failure triggered a full Safety Car on lap 46. Both Verstappen and Norris pitted for fresh tyres under the Safety Car, while Piastri stayed out, resulting in him holding second place ahead of his team-mate for the restart.

Clearing the Mercedes took some time, leading to a restart at the end of lap 53, setting up a 10-lap sprint to the finish.

Norris immediately began to use his significantly newer tyres to pressure Piastri and managed to get past him at the first chicane, with the pair coming very close to contact.

By then, Verstappen had again pulled clear, securing victory for Red Bull in their 400th Grand Prix start, finishing six seconds ahead of Norris.

Piastri commented: “I just braked too early. It was a good move by Max as well. Disappointing obviously, but we made a few wrong calls after that anyway. Not our best Sunday, so definitely a lot of things to look at and review. Well done to Max and Red Bull. It was a good move, and they had pace today.”

Further back, the remaining drama unfolded as Hamilton, also on fresh tyres, closed in on Leclerc, who was trying to hold off Albon (also on new tyres) for fourth. Hamilton and Albon got very close in the same chicane, resulting in Albon going off track, which allowed Hamilton to easily pass him before he quickly moved past Leclerc moments later.

As the stewards confirmed they were investigating Leclerc for forcing Albon off, Ferrari instructed the Monegasque driver to let the Williams through to avoid risking a penalty that could have dropped him further down the order.

Emilia Romagna GP Result: Top 10