Canadian Grand Prix: Max Verstappen wins again, Fernando Alonso back on the podium

After the European races in Monaco and Spain, F1 is making a stop in Canada this weekend before heading back to the Old Continent in two weeks. Saturday in Montreal was marked by a twist named Nico Hülkenberg, before being demoted to fifth place due to a penalty. This was also the case for Carlos Sainz, while the other Ferrari driver, Charles Leclerc, fell victim to his team’s poor strategy (once again).

As we are getting used to it seriously, it’s Max Verstappen who takes pole position this Sunday, followed by Fernando Alonso and the two Mercedes, Hamilton and Russell, both of whom were on the podium in Barcelona.

As soon as the lights go out, we will notice a very clean start from Max Verstappen, while Lewis Hamilton, galvanized by his recent second place finish, surges forward and gains an advantage over the Spaniard. The latter finds himself neck and neck with George Russell, but holds his ground and positions himself in third place at the start of the race.

Behind, Carlos Sainz is grappling with Sergio Perez. The Spaniard loses his position, before taking it back, without getting rid of the Mexican. Charles Leclerc sets the fastest time of this first lap, while the reigning world champion is already pulling ahead of Hamilton. It should be noted that Oscar Piastri had a very good start, gaining two positions and thus rising to 6th.

On the 7th lap, Logan Sargeant encounters an issue with his car and Williams orders him to throttle back. We have a virtual safety car, but it will end very quickly.

George Russell in the wall

Charles Leclerc increases his pace and tries to take advantage of the DRS to overtake Lando Norris, while the latter is in a tight battle with Nico Hülkenberg for 7th place. On the 12th lap, Max Verstappen notifies his team that he thinks he hit a bird, but the real bad news comes from George Russell, who, in the same lap, hits the wall in the chicane of turns 8-9, scattering carbon debris on the track. Therefore, the safety car is deployed.

The first five take advantage to return to the pit lane, but while returning to the pit lane after his stop, Hamilton narrowly misses colliding with Alonso. The British driver is being investigated for unsafe release, but there will be no further consequences. A similar dangerous move was noted between Lando Norris and Alex Albon, due to McLaren’s fault, but the British driver will also escape without penalty. An incident is also noted between Bottas, Ocon, and Magnussen for overtaking under the safety car.

On his side, George Russell was able to resume the race after a pit stop to replace the missing or damaged parts. The safety car comes in on the 16th lap.

At lap 20, Oscar Piastri loses a battle against Alex Albon who had the DRS advantage. The pressure got to the Australian, who couldn’t brake in time and had to take refuge in the run-off area before rejoining the track. Among the French drivers, Esteban Ocon gains the upper hand over Bottas and Magnussen, both of whom overtook him illegally under the safety car.

At the front, Fernando Alonso manages to overtake Lewis Hamilton on the inside, also taking advantage of the DRS, and therefore takes second position. Things are getting complicated for another Briton: after getting away without penalty for an unsafe release, Lando Norris is under investigation for driving too slowly in an unnecessary manner. However, it’s worth noting that by the 28th lap, both Woking cars are in the points. But a few laps later, the verdict is given: Norris receives a 5-second penalty for unsporting behavior.

On the 31st lap, as this Grand Prix once again seems like a walk in the park for the leader Max Verstappen, he informs his team that he is starting to lose grip with his tires. He is more than 5 seconds ahead of his pursuers.

A strange chase between Magnussen and Nyck de Vries ends up in the escape lane, but both drivers manage to slowly reverse and get back on the track. However, both drivers are under investigation for their dangerous maneuver. George Russell is the major winner of these mistakes: he managed to escape the DRS train and climbed up to 9th position, after being stuck in 17th place for a long time.

Alonso and Hamilton neck and neck

We are 20 laps away from the finish, and Alonso clearly emphasizes his desire to win this race. He is three seconds ahead of Hamilton, but more than 6 seconds behind Max Verstappen. The Dutchman’s lead is certainly less than in other Grand Prix races this season, but this gap will still need to be closed. Behind them, we find the two Ferraris, with Charles Leclerc in front, his team having clearly indicated to Carlos Sainz that he would not attempt to attack him.

Finally, after managing to hold a significant part of the race with a damaged car, George Russell is instructed by his team to go to the pit and retire.

With 10 laps to go, Max Verstappen has increased his lead to 8 seconds, while the British driver dangerously closed in on the Spaniard. The latter seems to be suffering from a problem with his rear brakes.

A little further back, Alex Albon, who is having one of his best races so far, is in 7th place behind Sergio Perez, but is starting to struggle with his hard tires, which are now 46 laps old. Esteban Ocon is lurking to take his position, but Norris and Bottas behind are also honking. However, whether it’s in the midfield or at the front, that’s where it will end: Max Verstappen once again wins the race, while Fernando Alonso takes second place on the podium, followed by Lewis Hamilton. The two Ferraris finish behind, with Charles Leclerc leading ahead of his teammate.

Note that in the last lap, Lando Norris and Alex Albon put on a show, with the Briton wanting to steal 7th place from him at all costs before the finish line. But the two drivers touched and the Briton went off the track. It remains to be seen if there will be any post-race penalties for this move.

The ranking of the Canadian Grand Prix