Who scripts Formula 1? Incredibly, the two guys at the centre of the biggest talking point after the Spanish Grand Prix two weeks ago - George Russell and Max Verstappen - are starting today's Canadian Grand Prix from the front row. Genius 'scriptwriting' by the racing gods!
Yes, it will be a Mercedes and a Red Bull muscling their way down to that finicky first section at the start of the race today in Montreal. In Qualifying on Saturday, Russell delivered one of the most exhilarating Formula 1 pole-winning laps of his career to deny Verstappen, who starts from P2.
These two have a serious beef. Neither cares to back off, Russell - like a growing band of rivals on the grid - is not buckling to Verstappen's intimidation tactics, and is prepared to rub rubber with the #1 Red Bull as we saw in Spain two Sundays ago.
The pair launching off that front row know that leading out of the Virage Senna complex will be vital, and telling. Track position will be crucial in this race, as attrition is expected to be high and the chance of a Safety Car, even a Red Flag, is possible.
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve punishes mistakes, as we saw throughout this weekend. With a bunch of rookies and Lance Stroll in the field, expect bent metal. Why mention them at this stage of the preview? Because it is from this pool of potential crash-happy drivers that the race can flip on its head. Not uncommon in Canada. Remember last year!
Hence, to win, Mercedes and Red Bull will have to be on top of their respective strategies and take advantage of any Safety Car, VSC or stoppage periods that may occur. Expect a lot to happen between Max and George within the first 400 or so metres of the start of this race.
McLarens were Missing in Action for front row duel
Once again, when the pressure was on, 2025 F1 World Championship leader Oscar Piastri did the business to claim P3, and was happy with his effort under the circumstances: "After how practice went, I'm pretty happy with myself. A nice turnaround."
It came out of the blue for the Aussie, who had struggled to find the sweet spot on the hitherto unbeatable MCL39 until it mattered. It was better than he expected, and significantly better than his teammate and title challenger on the fifth row.
But this is row two. Best rookie and increasingly impressive 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli in the other Mercedes will launch from P4 on the grid in his first race at the Montreal venue. The youngest driver on the grid starts ahead of living legends Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso.
What a moment. What a third row. Hamilton, a seven-time winner in Canada, only matched by the great Michael Schumacher here, is lined up next to his former nemesis, ex-teammate and fellow veteran Alonso. A combined age of 83 years, 137 wins between them, and nine F1 titles. Glorious.
Norris has damage limitation to do in Montreal today
Row 4 is headed up by Norris, who dropped the ball too often during Qualifying on Saturday. Trailing Piastri in the standings ahead of this round ten of the campaign, the Englishman will be in recovery mode in a car that has not had the edge it enjoyed in recent races. That means slugging it out in midfield mayhem.
Norris said of his Qualy: "Just too many mistakes. I hit the wall in the last lap. I think our pace is good enough, it's just I'm a bit too far back again."
Also disappointing, considering the pace he showed, Charles Leclerc probably suffered from the effect of the silly, self-induced shunt he had early into FP1. For sure, that has left him on the back foot for this race. But he only really misfired in Q3.
Prior to that, he looked good enough to be far higher up. Leclerc said afterwards: "I’m very disappointed. I believed in it today. I thought there was pace in the car to be on pole."
Should the stars align and fate play ball, several drivers could win the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix today. That's a far bigger pool of potential winners than in recent races, when it was either one of the McLaren boys or Max. Not this time.
Hamilton a seven time winner of the Canadian Grand Prix
Alex Albon heads up the fifth row. His Williams will line up P9 on Sunday, with rookie Franco Colapinto finally showing some form in the Alpine. Impressive performances, as both drivers bettered their more experienced teammates.
Carlos Sainz starts P16 and Pierre Gasly from P18. Unlucky perhaps, but disappointing from two veterans. What happened to banker laps?
Beyond the top five rows, the afternoon will be a typical slog in No Man's Land for the midfield and backmarker packs. But watch out for Isack Hadjar, who might've started from P9 had he not morphed into a mobile chicane during Qualifying. His clumsiness earned him a three-place grid drop to P12. Nevertheless, it was a strong showing in terms of pace. And he is a rookie.
In fact, Hadjar may be getting a call-up from Red Bull sooner rather than later. Yuki Tsunoda again bombed in Qualifying. No match at all for Verstappen starting from the front row, the Japanese driver lines up last. Although he made it into Q2, he was handed a ten-place grid drop for a red flag infringement. The Yuki experiment has failed. Next?
Stroll is back!
Lance Stroll's 'comeback' after sitting out the race in Spain two weeks ago with a suspected wrist injury remains something of a mystery, as the Aston Martin driver has invoked the old "medical privacy" right to keep everyone guessing. Which we did here.
In terms of performance on home soil in Montreal, he was back in the car for FP1, crashed in FP2, and was outqualified by Alonso in the sister car for the 22nd time in a row. The Spaniard was half a second quicker than his teammate Stroll.
As for predicting this one, in the last episode of the 2 Soft Compounds podcast, I predicted the top three in today's Canadian Grand Prix to be: P1 Hamilton, P2 Verstappen and P3 Russell. But really, the McLarens cannot be discounted. Leclerc and Norris may also play themselves into the podium equation.
Of course, as mentioned above, there is a very high potential for bent metal, which could turn this 54th Canadian Grand Prix on its head.
Piastri is the bookies' favourite for the 2025 Formula 1 title
Oscar Piastri has emerged as the bookmakers’ top pick for the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship following five wins in the opening nine races. The McLaren driver leads the standings on 186 points and is priced at 4/7 to win the title, according to Casino Beats.
Piastri is also the 13/10 favourite to win this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix, where he could extend his 10-point lead over teammate Lando Norris, who sits second in the championship and is listed at 7/4 for the title. Max Verstappen is third favourite at 8/1.
“It’s been a perfect start for McLaren,” said Casino Beats spokesperson Chavdar Vasilev. “Both drivers lead the Drivers’ standings, and the team tops the Constructors’ by 197 points.”
Now in his third season as a full-time driver, Piastri is in prime position to fight for his first world title.
Canadian Grand Prix Facts & Statistics by Reuters
- Track: Montreal's Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, round 10 of the 24 race championship:
- Lap distance: 4.361km. Total distance: 305.270km (70 laps)
- 2024 pole position: George Russell (Britain) Mercedes one minute 12.000 seconds
- 2024 race winner: Max Verstappen (Netherlands) Red Bull
- Race lap record: Valtteri Bottas (Finland) 1:13.078, Mercedes, 2019.
- Start time: 1800GMT (1400 local)
- This weekend will be the 54th Canadian Grand Prix, and 44th in Montreal.
- Verstappen is chasing his fourth Canadian win in a row, which would be unprecedented.
- Lewis Hamilton has won seven times in Montreal (in 2007, 2010, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019), including the first of his career. He holds the record jointly with Ferrari great Michael Schumacher.
- They also share the record for six poles each.
- Fernando Alonso (2006) and Verstappen (2022, 2023, 2024) are the other winners.
- The circuit on the Ile Notre-Dame has 14 corners and is named after late Ferrari great Gilles Villeneuve. Mosport and Mont Tremblant have also hosted Canadian Grands Prix.
- McLaren have won 13 times in Canada, Ferrari 12 (11 in Montreal).
- The rain-hit Canadian Grand Prix of 2011 was Formula 1's longest race, lasting four hours, four minutes and 39.537 seconds. The safety car was deployed six times, another record.
- The circuit is tough on brakes. The wall at the exit to the final corner has been "The Wall of Champions" since 1999 when Damon Hill, Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve crashed there.
- Aston Martin's Lance Stroll is the sole Canadian Formula 1 driver. The last Canadian to stand on a home podium was Jacques Villeneuve in 1996.
2025 FORMULA 1 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
- McLaren's Oscar Piastri leads the drivers' championship by 10 points from teammate Lando Norris. Verstappen is 49 points behind Piastri.
- Leaders and champions McLaren are 197 points clear of Ferrari, with Mercedes a further six adrift.
- Piastri has won five of nine races this season, Verstappen and Norris two each.
- Seven-times world champion Hamilton has a record 105 career victories from 365 starts. Verstappen has won 65 grands prix and is third on the all-time list after Schumacher on 91.
- Piastri has seven career wins to Norris's six and is only the third Australian to win five in a season. The others, Jack Brabham (1960) and Alan Jones (1980), were both champions.
- Piastri has been on pole four times this season, Verstappen three and Norris twice.
- Norris has started on the front row in five of nine.
- Both McLaren drivers have finished on the podium eight times in 2025, Piastri eight times in a row.
- Charles Leclerc's second place in Monaco was Ferrari's best of the season so far.
- Only Piastri, Norris and Verstappen have scored in every race this season.
- Piastri has scored for 35 races in a row, the third-longest Formula 1 scoring streak.
- Two rookies have yet to score -- Sauber's Gabriel Bortoleto and Alpine's Franco Colapinto, who replaced Jack Doohan after six races.
MILESTONE
- Canada will be Haas's 200th grand prix.
- This will be a 100th grand prix for Red Bull's Yuki Tsunoda, although only his 97th Formula 1 start.
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