Max Verstappen has surged to an impressive second victory of the season at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, the Dutchman having snatched P1 at the start before holding his position ahead of the McLaren pair in an eventful afternoon that featured Virtual Safety Car and full Safety Car phases.
The race got underway in exciting fashion as polesitter Oscar Piastri initially launched well off the line – only for Verstappen to make a stunning overtake through the Tamburello chicane, resulting in the World Champion going on to build a lead in the laps that followed.
Piastri then joined a number of drivers who made an early pit stop, having stopped for the hard compound on Lap 14, but the call did not seem to work out for the Australian, with Verstappen staying out on track to further extend his advantage in first place.
As questions persisted over whether a one-stop or two-stop strategy was the way forward – with around half of the field remaining out following that earlier flurry of action in the pits for the other half – the picture was turned on its head when a Virtual Safety Car was called on Lap 29 after Esteban Ocon pulled onto the grass in the Haas.
Race results
This allowed for those who had yet to stop to visit the pits without losing much time – and this most crucially included Verstappen, who pitted before emerging back on track with a staggering lead of around 20s from Norris in P2.
But there was more drama to come later on when a Safety Car was deployed owing to Kimi Antonelli pulling off track on Lap 46 due to an issue with his Mercedes, allowing Verstappen to stop again – as did Norris, while the other McLaren of Piastri did not, raising questions over whether the papaya team would opt to let the Briton move ahead of his team mate upon the restart.
The restart was executed flawlessly by Verstappen, who went on to clinch a fourth consecutive win at Imola in Red Bull’s 400th Grand Prix start – while, six seconds behind him, Norris had overtaken Piastri for P2, with the Australian then doing enough to hold off Lewis Hamilton behind him in fourth following a solid recovery drive for Ferrari after their Qualifying woes.
Alex Albon continued a good run for Williams by taking P5, having won out in a feisty late-race battle with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc that left the Monegasque in P6. George Russell, meanwhile, took P7 as the sole Mercedes finisher following Antonelli’s retirement, while Carlos Sainz added to William’s tally in P8.
Piastri was amongst those to make an early pit stop in the race
Isack Hadjar was ninth for Racing Bulls in another notable performance from the rookie, with Yuki Tsunoda climbing his way up to 10th to claim the final point on offer, perhaps bringing some solace to the Red Bull driver after his dramatic crash in Saturday’s Qualifying.
Fernando Alonso again missed out on points in P11 on a day where Aston Martin looked to be slipping backwards, with Nico Hulkenberg also losing out on a potential top-10 finish in P12. Pierre Gasly followed in P13 for Alpine, ahead of Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
Franco Colapinto crossed the line in 16th on his first race at the wheel of the Alpine, while Ollie Bearman in the Haas and Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto rounded out the classified runners in 17th and 18th respectively, with Ocon and Antonelli the two retirees at Imola.
Race Highlights: 2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix
One day on from an action-packed Qualifying session – which saw championship leader Piastri claim his third pole position of the season ahead of Verstappen and Russell – it was finally time for the paddock to switch their attentions to the main event, the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
Two changes had been made to the starting order prior to the 63-lap race getting underway, with Colapinto receiving a one-place grid penalty for a rule breach during Qualifying, having entered the fast lane of the pit lane before a session restart time had been confirmed following a red flag in Q1.
This meant that the Argentinian – in his first event back on the F1 grid since his nine-race stint as a substitute for Williams in 2024 – would line up in P16 for Alpine, with the returning driver surely hoping for a better Sunday after ultimately crashing out of Qualifying.
Tsunoda, meanwhile, was set to start from the pit lane. Having suffered a dramatic incident on Saturday that saw his car spin into the gravel and flip over during the early stages of Q1, the Red Bull team subsequently made changes to the Japanese driver’s RB21 under parc ferme conditions.
Once the cars had assembled on the grid as the time for lights out neared, it was confirmed after the tyre blankets had been removed that the majority of the field would start on the medium compound, with Hamilton, Antonelli, Hulkenberg, Bearman and Tsunoda the exceptions on the hard rubber.
There was a thrilling start to the race as Verstappen took the fight to Piastri
After the formation lap had been completed and the race kicked off at 1500 local time in warm and dry conditions, Piastri initially launched away strongly – but Verstappen was not to be deterred and the World Champion pulled off an incredible overtake by squeezing through the Tamburello chicane to snatch the lead.
Behind them Russell had a solid start before having to fend off a chasing Norris, while Leclerc had gained a position to move up into P10. And as the action settled following the first couple of laps, the Monegasque looked to be in a fighting mood following Ferrari’s disappointing Saturday as he scrapped with Gasly, resulting in the Alpine running wide through the gravel.
Elsewhere Hamilton was also looking racy as he tried to find a way past Antonelli in a duel for P11, with the Mercedes ultimately holding the position. Up front, meanwhile, Verstappen had built a lead of 1.6s from Piastri by Lap 5, the pair followed by Russell, Norris, Alonso, Sainz, Albon, Stroll, Leclerc and Hadjar.
While Imola might be a tricky circuit to overtake on, there were plenty of drivers trying to pressure their opponents in battles across the pack. Norris was hot on the tail of Russell in the scrap for third, while Alonso had a chasing Sainz behind him.
That fight between Russell and Norris continued to heat up, leading to Norris trying to make a move on Lap 9 before an attempt one tour later saw the McLaren briefly dip his wheels onto the grass. “I’m not sure how I’m going to make it to the target lap, pushing like this,” Russell radioed in, voicing concerns about his tyre life.
2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix: Verstappen takes the lead on the race start with stunning move on Piastri
This was perhaps music to the ears of Alonso, with the back and forth between the Mercedes and McLaren cars allowing the Spaniard to close in. However, it did not take long for Norris to pass Russell through the chicane on Lap 11, meaning that the Briton now faced the challenge of closing the gap to Piastri six seconds up ahead.
After all of this, Russell dived into the pit lane to swap his medium tyres for a set of the hards, with a flurry of pit stops suddenly taking place a little earlier than had been expected. Alonso was amongst those also to stop, sparking a moment of drama when flames appeared from the front brakes of the Aston Martin as he exited the pit lane.
Piastri opted to pit for the hard rubber on Lap 14 – but the stop proved to be a fairly slow one at 3.6s. Leclerc, meanwhile, looked to have gained during the pit stops phase, the Ferrari driver finding himself ahead of Russell, Sainz and Alonso on the road after all of this group had pitted.
Verstappen, meanwhile, had stayed out on track with a 10-second lead over Norris – who was also yet to pit – while the Dutchman’s team mate Tsunoda tried to make Piastri’s life more difficult as the Australian tried to overtake him for P10, the Japanese racer putting up a good fight before the McLaren ultimately made a successful move.
As Piastri gained further positions by picking off more cars that had yet to stop – that being Bearman and Colapinto – Leclerc continued his own ascent by clinching P11 from Tsunoda. And up at the front, Norris was told by his engineer: “The key for us is free air and going long.” Would a one-stop work for those extending their opening stints?
2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix: Norris battles past Russell take P3
Strategy was proving a key topic of discussion throughout the pack, with Sainz – who had already made a stop while team mate Albon had not – suggesting that a one-stop was the way to go. Hamilton, meanwhile, was also on a split strategy to the other Ferrari and debated whether an undercut could be effective, only to be told that there was too much traffic around him.
By Lap 25, Verstappen remained nine seconds clear of Norris up front, followed by Albon, Hadjar, Antonelli, Hamilton, Piastri, Hulkenberg, Leclerc and Bearman, with Piastri and Leclerc the only two in that top 10 to have made a pit stop.
It did not take long for that order to change as Piastri swept past Hamilton for sixth place, meaning that Antonelli was next in his sights. Having to carve through this traffic was not helping the championship leader out, with the gamble to pit him early seemingly not paying off.
Norris peeled into the pits on Lap 29, the Briton emerging back on track in P7 on the hard tyres – and just as he returned to the circuit, the yellow flags were flying due to Ocon having pulled onto the grass due to an issue with his Haas.
As a Virtual Safety Car was subsequently called, this worked out perfectly for Verstappen, who dived into the pit lane for his stop and returned to the track in the lead. Others also seized the opportunity to make their own stops, with all of those who had yet to pit taking the chance to do so.
Verstappen was able to make a perfectly-timed pit stop when a Virtual Safety Car was called
Several early-stopping cars also pitted for a second time under the VSC, including Leclerc, who voiced his frustrations about the timing over the radio. Piastri also made a second stop, bringing him back out into P4, while some potential unsafe releases looked to have occurred during those busy few minutes in the pit lane.
After all of this had shaken out and the VSC period had come to an end, the order on Lap 33 stood as Verstappen – now holding a whopping lead of 19 seconds – from Norris, Albon, Piastri, Hadjar, Antonelli, Hamilton, Leclerc, Alonso and Stroll.
While things looked to be working out well for Albon, his team mate Sainz was in the wars as he fought with Tsunoda for P13, the pair making contact as the Spaniard squeezed past. Hamilton, meanwhile, looked to be in dynamic form after benefitting from a stop during the VSC phase, the seven-time World Champion taking P6 from Antonelli before surging ahead of Hadjar for P5.
Elsewhere, Piastri had closed the gap down to Albon in a duel for the final spot on the podium – and the papaya car was soon through into Turn 2. And at the other end of the top 10, Alonso had lost out on 10th place to Hulkenberg, the Aston Martins seemingly slipping back after a promising performance in Qualifying.
In contrast to the British team’s struggles, Ferrari looked resurgent following a challenging Saturday, with Leclerc clearing Hadjar to take P6. Hamilton was running 1.6s up the road in P5 – but with the latter having to nurse the medium tyres, could the squad potentially be faced with a team orders call should Leclerc close in?
Hamilton was looking racy as he put in a strong recovery drive in front of Ferrari's home crowd
Speaking of squad strategy decisions, Gasly voiced his gratitude as the Frenchman was allowed through on new team mate Colapinto to move up into P15, giving the opportunity to chase down Stroll up ahead. Alonso, meanwhile, labelled himself as the “unluckiest driver in the world” as he continued to slide backwards.
Another person not experiencing much luck was home favourite Antonelli, who pulled off onto the grass at Turn 8 on Lap 46 due to an issue with his Mercedes. A full Safety Car was then deployed – and Verstappen took the opportunity to pit again, having been placed well on track to make the stop.
Norris also visited the pits but suffered a slightly slow stop, bringing the Briton out in third behind Piastri who had not pitted again. Albon also made another stop before emerging back on track in fifth, with the top 10 now standing as Verstappen, Piastri, Norris, Leclerc, Albon, Russell, Hamilton, Sainz, Hadjar and Hulkenberg.
There looked to be concerns about tyre life ahead of the restart, with Leclerc questioning whether he could remain in the points on his older rubber while Norris pointed out that Piastri’s 18-lap-old hard tyres may not hold out well – in contrast to his own fresher rubber. Would McLaren have a decision to make here?
As the stricken Mercedes of Antonelli was removed from the circuit, anticipation was building over when the action would resume – and the answer came when the Safety Car peeled into the pits at the end of Lap 53, allowing Verstappen to execute a strong restart and hold the lead ahead of a 10-lap sprint to the finish.
The race took another dramatic turn when the Safety Car was deployed
While the Dutchman was already 1.5s clear one tour down, Norris had closed to within one second of Piastri in what could prove to be a quandary for McLaren. Elsewhere Albon was hot on the tail of Leclerc – the Williams on much fresher tyres – while Hamilton looked to be all over the back of Russell and Tsunoda had picked off Hulkenberg for P10.
Hamilton had soon overtaken his former team mate to move up into sixth, just as Norris was getting ever closer to fellow McLaren driver Piastri. As the pair went side-by-side into Turn 2, Norris slipped through to grab second place.
Behind them, Albon was fighting hard to get past Leclerc, only for the Monegasque to defend against him. Things got incredibly close on Lap 60, with the two cars getting nail-bitingly close – resulting in Albon running through the gravel and dropping back down to sixth.
This allowed Hamilton to move up into fifth – before subsequently snatching fourth from his team mate and surging ahead of his fresher rubber. Albon then managed to close back in on Leclerc – but would he be able to make a move stick this time?
As the stewards opted to investigate that previous Albon and Leclerc incident, the Williams ultimately found a way past the Ferrari on the final lap of the race, leading Leclerc to ponder over the radio: "What did I do wrong?"
Albon had an eventful afternoon at Imola
Up ahead, Verstappen crossed the line to seal a 65th career victory some 6.109s ahead of Norris in second, while Piastri followed by a similar margin to his team mate in third. Hamilton ended his first Italian race as a Ferrari driver in fourth, with the Briton dedicating his result to the Tifosi.
Albon held onto fifth ahead of Leclerc, while Russell took some valuable points for Mercedes in seventh on a day where only one of their cars made the finish. Sainz claimed P8 in the Williams, followed by Hadjar in ninth and Tsunoda in the final points-paying position of 10th.
Alonso ended the event in P11, marking a disappointing outing for Aston Martin, with Hulkenberg behind in P12, Gasly in P13 and Lawson in a quiet P14 for Racing Bulls.
Stroll claimed 15th place, while Colapinto was 16th on his return to the F1 grid for Alpine and Bearman and Bortoleto completed the order in 17th and 18th places. Antonelli and Ocon both recorded a DNF at Imola, with each having to pull off the track owing to an issue on their respective cars.
The end result of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix means that Piastri continues to lead the Drivers’ Championship on 146 points, 13 points clear of Norris in second – but Verstappen has now closed the gap down to just nine points behind Norris in third place.
Verstappen recorded his 65th career victory with his latest triumph at Imola
"The start itself wasn’t particularly great, but then I was still on the outside line, basically the normal line, and I was like, ‘Well, I’m just going to try and send it around the outside’," said Verstappen. "It worked really well! That of course then unleased our pace, because once we were in the lead, the car was good. I could look after my tyres and we had very good pace today.
"Again, a massive improvement from Friday, and I’m very pleased for that. That VSC was quite handy to pit, and even then, even on the hard compound, I think our pace was very strong. Then of course there was the Safety Car, so the field was all back together. But even then on the restart, I think we managed it all really well and brought it home. I’m incredibly proud of everyone. It’s been a very important week for us, the car has performed really well, and also I think the whole execution of the whole race, when to pit, the pit stops themselves, were all very good."
For the next stop in a triple header of races, F1 will travel straight to Monte Carlo for the Monaco Grand Prix from May 23-25. Head to the RACE HUB to find out how you can follow the action from the .
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