Verstappen wins Italian GP for 1st time to close in on title
Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen again made light work of starting down the grid as he won the Italian Grand Prix to leave him within touching distance of a second successive title
MONZA, Italy (AP) — Formula One championship leader Max Verstappen again made light work of starting down the grid as he won the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday to leave him within touching distance of a second successive title.
Verstappen now has a 116-point lead over Charles Leclerc, who finished second after another questionable strategy decision from Ferrari on its home track. With just six races remaining, the Dutch driver could mathematically clinch the title in Singapore next month.
It was the first time Verstappen has set foot on the iconic Monza podium, with his highest previous finish being fifth in 2018.
Verstappen started seventh after he was among a number of drivers hit by grid penalties in Monza but made his way up to third by the first corner of the second lap. The Red Bull driver then picked off George Russell in a Mercedes at the start of Lap 5 setting up the hunt for polesitter Leclerc in his Ferrari.
