The roar at Monza turned to stunned silence within minutes.
On just the third lap of the 2026 Italian Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc’s race – and with it, much of Ferrari’s home hope – ended in a brutal impact with the tyre barriers that brought out an immediate red flag and stopped the race in its tracks.
Leclerc, starting third after Oscar Piastri’s post-qualifying grid penalty dropped the McLaren driver to sixth, had arrived on Sunday with a genuine shot at delivering a home victory for the Tifosi. Instead, he completed only two laps before disaster struck.
A dream start shattered
The start itself had already ripped up the script. George Russell launched his Mercedes off the line and muscled past Alpine polesitter Pierre Gasly to seize the early lead, with Max Verstappen slipping into third and the field jostling ferociously behind.
Then came the moment that sucked the air out of Monza.
Leclerc lost control and speared off into the tyre wall, his Ferrari ploughing deep into the barriers. When the dust settled, the red car lay crumpled against the Pirelli-branded hoardings, the front end destroyed, debris scattered as marshals sprinted to the scene.
Race control wasted no time. “Session Stopped” flashed up, and the red flag flew. The field rolled slowly back into the pit lane, the early chaos frozen on the timing screens with Russell at the top, Gasly demoted from his hard-earned pole to the role of chaser, and Verstappen lurking in third.
For Leclerc, there was only the cold reality of a DNF, officially classified after just two laps.
Heartbreak for the Tifosi
The reaction in the grandstands told its own story. This is Ferrari territory, a sea of red that had turned up hoping to see their home hero finally conquer Monza again. Instead, they watched his car being pulled from the barriers, hopes shredded as completely as the advertising boards he’d torn through.
On the radio, the concern cut through the noise. With Leclerc out, Lewis Hamilton suddenly found himself as Ferrari’s lone representative on track.
“Is he okay?” Hamilton asked over team radio.
“Yes, he is okay,” came the reply from the pit wall.
It was the only answer that really mattered in that moment.
Ferrari left scrambling
Once the immediate relief over Leclerc’s condition settled, the sporting reality came into sharp focus. Ferrari’s carefully laid plans evaporated in a heartbeat. Their home race, already loaded with pressure and expectation, now rested entirely on Hamilton’s shoulders.
The restart would bring its own storylines: Russell defending a precious lead, Gasly trying to reclaim control from the front row he’d converted so well, Verstappen sitting ominously in third. But for the Tifosi, everything felt different.
Their main man was out. Their anthem still echoed around the old royal park, but the car they’d pinned their hopes on was wrecked in the barriers.
On a day built for Ferrari glory, Monza was left watching, waiting, and wondering if Hamilton alone could rescue anything from the wreckage.
