Monza Prepares for 2026 Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix

Monza sets the stage for Round 13 of the 2026 Formula 1 season, with Ferrari’s temple of speed braced for another seismic weekend from 4–6 September.

The championship picture looks very different to the one that left for the summer break. Lando Norris has come back a different animal.

The McLaren driver tore through the chaos of a wild, weather-hit Dutch Grand Prix to claim his second consecutive victory, turning a farewell to Zandvoort into a statement of intent. While others slipped, slid and second-guessed strategy calls, Norris kept his head and his foot down, steering McLaren through the storm to the top step again.

McLaren moved quickly to lock that version of Norris in for the long haul. The Briton has signed a new deal that ties him to the team until the end of the 2030 season, a clear signal that both driver and team see this as a project built to last, not a fleeting purple patch.

Behind him in the Netherlands, Kimi Antonelli did exactly what a title leader should do on a day of mayhem: bank big points. The Mercedes rookie, driving with the composure of a veteran, brought his car home in second place and stretched his advantage in the drivers’ standings to 59 points over team-mate George Russell.

Russell, forced to settle for third, still kept his name in the title conversation, but the gap now has real weight. Every race from here tightens the screw.

Lewis Hamilton, carrying Ferrari’s hopes into its home race, also featured in the Dutch Grand Prix fight, adding another solid result to his campaign. Now he heads to Monza, where the red cars carry not just expectation but obligation. The tifosi will demand a response on home soil against a McLaren operation riding a wave and a Mercedes outfit that has turned consistency into a weapon.

The calendar now rolls into Italy with storylines everywhere: Norris chasing a hat-trick of wins and validating that long-term contract, Antonelli defending a commanding lead with the calm of a champion in the making, Russell trying to claw back ground before the gap becomes a gulf, Hamilton and Ferrari under the unforgiving spotlight of Monza.