Canadian Grand Prix: Podium of champions

The Canadian Grand Prix returned, and so did the excitement. One of the most popular races in the season caused some trouble with weather conditions and tyre wear. However, it made for a good race with plenty of commotion. The hometown boy, Lance Stroll, didn’t quite race like a hometown hero, but he did land in the points.

Let’s take a look at the weekend.

In free practice 1, the session was cut short due to synch issues. However, before the early finish, Alpine Pierre Gasly suffered with no gears, and the iconic Canadian Ground Hogs made an appearance.

Practice session 1 results:

1)Bottas

2) Stroll

3)Alonso

During free practice 2, some drivers went for a push, cool, push approach. Max Verstappen suffered from hot tyres, so he used this strategy. A red flag was waved when Nico Hulkenberg’s Hass suffered from engine failure. This isn’t the first time their Ferrari engine cut their sessions short. Esteban Ocon also stopped causing a yellow flag. A heavy amount of rain closed the session, which would later on cause some trouble.

Practice session 2 results:

1)Hamilton

2)Russell

3)Sainz

In free practice 3, the decision of wet tyre of inters was the main debate. While most went for full wets, double world champion Fernando Alonso went for inters. And despite struggling for a clean lap, he did finish third fastest. Sainz had a disaster in turn 1, ripping his Ferrari's nose off, damaging the rear, and ultimately breaking the suspension. A red flag for the final free practice of the Canadian Grand Prix.

Practice session 3 results:

1)Verstappen

2)Leclerc

3)Alonso

Qualifying was more successful than others, Zhou Guanyu had no power, and an angry Pierre Gasly was out in Qualifying 1. The bottom 5 were, unfortunately, the ‘struggling teams.

Alexander Albon took a risk in Qualifying 2 and opted for slicks. His risk earned a phenomenal reward as the Williams driver finished first. Williams has been a low-performing team for the last few years, but Alex showed what their car could do. Hometown boy Lance Stroll’s Qualifying ended in session 2.

Visibility was next to nothing in the final qualifying session. Most drivers struggled and didn’t complete many clean laps. Oscar Piastri landed in the barriers and qualified in ninth place, two places behind his teammate Lando Norris.

The starting grid went as follows:

1)Verstappen

2)Hulkenberg

3)Alonso

The race was full of overtakes and barrier collisions. A nightmare race for American Williams driver Logan Sargeant who retired early due to his team’s radio call. In a later interview, he said he wasn’t exactly sure of the reason.

Corner 9 caused a problem with Brit George Russell, who brought out the safety car after contact.

World champions Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso had a close call in the pits when a tight release from the Mercedes driver caused Alonso to hit the brakes hard. Some saw that as an unsafe release.

Rookie Nyck De Vries caused chaos at the back with Hass driver Kevin Magnussen, taking the inside line and locking up, stopping Magnussen from turning and having to drive off the circuit with the Dutch driver.

The third-place driver from the last Grand Prix retired on lap 55 from his previous damage. The Mercedes couldn’t hold for the entire race, and Russell had to settle for no points this round.

Red Bull celebrated their 100^th victory thanks to Max Verstappen. His teammate Sergio Perez did bring home points for the championship, but he was three positions away from the podium and the usual Red Bull standard.

2^nd and 3^rd were won by Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton.

Post-race interviews were mixed emotions. Many race difficulties were similar, tyre wear, rainy conditions and clipping barriers. However, some finished better than others.

Max Verstappen reported

“There’s a long way to go.” And “It wasn’t their strength.”

Despite his victory and Red Bull’s impressive record, he still believes they should take every race as it comes, and Canada wasn’t their strongest circuit.  

The driver of the day, Alexander Albon, suppressed everyone's expectations and finished 7^th place, just behind Red Bull’s Sergio Perez. His impressive defence and strategy easily made this Grand Prix his best of the season.

In an interview with Formula 1, he said:

“It was more than they expected, but it was stressful.” “The work at the factory is monumental, and they put a lot into this weekend.”

The Thai driver was very appreciative of his team and their efforts. He continued to say they were battling with Alpha Tauri, and the upgrades were going well so far.

The podium was complete with the World Champions of the grid. Fernando Alonso remains Mr consistent with yet another podium. Could we see him in the top spot this season?

Lewis Hamilton made it to third after he said, “He didn’t put up a fight with Alonso; he was too fast.”

Mercedes’s upgrades have worked well for the seven-time world champion as he earns another podium position and creeps his way up to Fernando Alonso in the championship.