Motor racing-Kimi is in control of title race and deserves to be, says Russell
Antonelli's Historic Monza Triumph Widens Championship Gap to 66 Points
Bharatmorningnews.com – MONZA, Italy, Sept 6 — A 20-year-old Italian driver crossed the finish line at his home circuit on Sunday having started from 19th place on the grid, claimed his seventh victory of the season, and extended his lead at the top of the Formula One standings to a commanding 66-point cushion. Kimi Antonelli's performance at the Italian Grand Prix was not merely a win; it was a statement that reshaped the remaining narrative of the 2025 title fight.
Russell Concedes the Momentum Has Shifted
His Mercedes teammate George Russell, who started second and finished second, offered no pretense of a dramatic late-season reversal. Speaking to reporters after the race, the British driver acknowledged straightforwardly that the championship had slipped beyond his realistic reach.
"Definitely Kimi's in control of it and he's deserving to be in control of it," Russell told reporters after starting and finishing second.
Russell went further, dismissing any notion of a heroic comeback narrative. His mindset, he explained, had settled into a pragmatic race-by-race framework rather than a points-chase calculation.
"For me personally, I'm not even thinking about a fight or a comeback or anything. I'm just focused on taking it race by race and trying to maximise every single weekend."
The gap, at 66 points after 13 of what will be a longer season, represents roughly three race wins' worth of separation. Russell acknowledged the mathematical difficulty without bitterness.
"He's performing incredibly well. It's going to be exceptionally challenging to overcome that gap, so I'm just sort of accepting that it is what it is and I'm just going to enjoy it from here on in and try and win as many races as possible."
A Grid Position That Rewrites the Record Books
The scale of Antonelli's achievement at Monza extends well beyond the points table. Starting from 19th and crossing the line first places him in rarefied company. Only one driver in the entire history of Formula One has ever converted a more disadvantaged grid position into a race victory: Britain's John Watson, who drove a McLaren to the winner's circle at the 1983 U.S. Grand Prix West in Long Beach, California, having begun from 22nd.
For Italian motorsport, the win carries additional historical weight. Antonelli became the first Italian-born driver to take his home Grand Prix since Ferrari's Ludovico Scarfiotti triumphed at Monza in 1966. He also became the first driver to hold the championship lead while standing on the Monza podium since Alberto Ascari sealed his second world title at the same circuit in 1953. Nearly seven decades separated those two milestones before a 20-year-old Mercedes driver collapsed the timeline in a single afternoon.
Antonelli Resists the Euphoria
Despite the magnitude of the result, Antonelli displayed a maturity that belied his age when asked about the championship picture. He declined to frame the weekend in terms of title contention, pointing instead to the volatility that has defined the current season.
"I don't want to really look at it because we've seen in this season how things can change very quickly," he said.
"There's no point in thinking about the championship and we've just got to stay in the moment, present, and then take it race by race. And then we'll see where we end up at the end of the season."
That measured tone contrasts sharply with the emotional weight of the occasion. Antonelli described the experience of driving through a packed Monza grandstand as something close to a lifelong fantasy realized.
"I think this is the most special podium of the season. To see all the fans on the straight, it's just incredible."
"The support has been great this weekend. So definitely seeing the grandstand cheering every lap, for sure it gave that little bit of extra to push more and to try and do even better to win it."
What the Gap Means for the Remaining Calendar
With 66 points separating the two Mercedes drivers, the title race now hinges on whether Antonelli can sustain his current form across the remaining rounds while Russell recovers enough race wins to close the deficit. A single dominant weekend for Antonelli would push the gap beyond 90 points, a threshold that has historically made title reversals virtually impossible in modern Formula One. Conversely, a mechanical failure or qualifying misfortune for the Italian would narrow the margin and reintroduce uncertainty.
For Mercedes as a team, the situation presents a unique internal dynamic: both cars are competitive enough to win, yet the championship is effectively decided by which driver converts that competitiveness more consistently. Russell's willingness to frame his remaining season around individual race victories rather than points arithmetic suggests the team has already begun planning around the possibility that Antonelli will take the title, while keeping the door open for a late surge should circumstances shift.
The next round will test whether Antonelli's Monza momentum translates into continued dominance, or whether the season's demonstrated unpredictability reasserts itself. For now, the 66-point cushion stands, and the narrative belongs to the driver who started 19th and finished first on the most emotionally charged circuit in the calendar.
Related Reading
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Motor racing Kimi is in control?Motor racing Kimi is in control is the main topic of this guide. The article explains the context, practical details, and next steps readers should understand.
Why does Motor racing Kimi is in control matter?Motor racing Kimi is in control matters because readers are looking for a useful answer, not just a short summary. Good content should match search intent and help them decide what to do next.