Formula 1 witnessed a massive upset as Pierre Gasly took home his first career win with AlphaTauri. The Italian Grand Prix was defined by chaos and surprises, including a surprising seventh-place finish for Lewis Hamilton after he was hit with a time penalty.
In one of the most tense finishes in recent memory, Gasly held onto the lead, beating McLaren's Carlos Sainz by less than a second for a deeply emotional win. It was a strange race where the typical heavyweights either made critical errors or retired. Meanwhile, Lance Stroll grabbed third for Racing Point—his second podium to date—and Lando Norris finished fourth for McLaren.
AlphaTauri has broken the long-standing dominance of Mercedes, Red Bull, and Ferrari, becoming the first team outside that trio to win a race since 2013. This victory also mirrors a piece of history for the team, whose last win occurred at Monza in 2008 with Sebastian Vettel.
An ecstatic Gasly shared that the win felt almost unbelievable given the hardships he had faced over the last year and a half. He had been abruptly dropped from the Red Bull team nearly a year earlier. He noted that no words could truly express his gratitude toward the AlphaTauri team for their belief in him and for helping him achieve this milestone.
Hamilton had controlled the early part of the race but was penalized for entering the pit lane while it was closed—a result of Kevin Magnussen's car breaking down and stopping on the side of the track.
This penalty sent Hamilton toward the back of the pack, though he fought his way back up to seventh. His teammate, Valtteri Bottas, finished fifth after struggling with a poor start, while Red Bull's Max Verstappen was forced to retire due to a mechanical failure.
However, the weekend was a disaster for Ferrari on their own home turf. Charles Leclerc suffered a heavy crash at the Parabolica, which triggered a red flag and a temporary race suspension. To make matters worse, Sebastian Vettel had to retire early in the race because of brake issues.
Daniel Ricciardo finished sixth for Renault, with Hamilton's final move pushing Esteban Ocon down the order in the closing stages. Daniil Kvyat and Sergio Perez, both of whom looked strong early on, eventually crossed the line in ninth and tenth positions.