Red Bull driver Max Verstappen won the Italian race, establishing a record of ten consecutive victories in the Formula 1 World Championship on Sunday. Sergio Perez finished in second place with Red Bull, surpassing Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, who took the third and fourth positions, respectively. This marks the sixth time this season that Red Bull has dominated the top two spots.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Verstappen after crossing the finish line, "Well done, my friend, you're flying in your own world, and this is a historic win. It's amazing, and you should feel proud." Verstappen, 25, who won in Italy last year, responded, "Yes, it's a nice statistic."
Charles Leclerc came in fourth with Ferrari, followed by Mercedes duo George Russell and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. Alex Albon, a driver for Williams, secured seventh place, outperforming Lando Norris from McLaren, Fernando Alonso from Aston Martin, and Valtteri Bottas from Alfa Romeo.
Verstappen matched Sebastian Vettel's record of nine consecutive wins achieved with Red Bull last week in the Netherlands and appears to be on the path to further victories. He has won 12 out of 14 races this year, continuing Red Bull's dominance since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the end of last season, and it is the 47th victory of the Dutch driver's career.
Many did not expect Sainz to hold onto the lead for long given Red Bull's speed in races, yet the Spanish driver fought hard while Verstappen was frustrated with his inability to advance. Verstappen told his team after Sainz closed the door on him on lap six, "This isn't nice." Meanwhile, Ferrari told Sainz, "Good move."
Verstappen commented on Ferrari's speed on the straight after three more laps and waited for his opportunity. Once Verstappen moved ahead, he pulled away with a 3.8-second lead by lap 18. Perez started from fifth place after the race start was delayed due to Yuki Tsunoda's AlphaTauri car stopping during the warm-up lap. The Mexican driver needed 32 laps to advance to third place after overtaking Leclerc, then struggled to get past Sainz until lap 46. The two Ferrari drivers engaged in an exciting battle for third place until they were told by their team to maintain their positions.
