Montoya: Mercedes should have double-stacked Russell and Antonelli at Monza

Kimi Antonelli's historic win at Monza is overshadowed by a strategic controversy at Mercedes. Former F1 driver Juan Pablo Montoya believes Mercedes compromised George Russell's race by not double-stacking its drivers under the virtual safety car. Russell led the early stages and was the prime candidate for victory, but was left out while Antonelli pitted. Antonelli then caught and overtook Russell to win. Montoya said on F1 TV that Russell deserved pit priority under the VSC: "He was leading and he should have had priority on the pitstop. When that virtual safety car came, at that point, it's quicker to stop than staying out. They should have double-stacked him and he should have stopped ahead of Antonelli." He added that Antonelli might still have won, but it would have been a much closer fight. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff defended the decision, saying the two-stop strategy was theoretically best but not considered for Russell. He said nothing could have stopped Antonelli and that Russell fought with worn tyres at the end. Wolff also ruled out other options for Russell, saying he was on the hard tyre and committed to a one-stop strategy.