Canadian Grand Prix Highlights

Formula 1 returned this weekend after a week-long break for the Canada Grand Prix, held in Montreal. A beautiful track on the calendar that is held on a man-made island, visually it is a gorgeous track surrounded by water plus a dense amount of trees alongside the track, making it seem like you are racing through a forest. A great return to F1 as we come back after that triple header. So here is your recap of the Canadian Grand Prix!

Qualifying led to Mercede’s George Russell placing at the front of the grid, starting the race from pole position.

1st lap, driver Alex Albon left the track and ended up in an offroad situation, transporting us into thinking we were watching a rally race. He later ended up retiring early from the race due to a mechanical issue with the car. A very unlucky weekend for him and his team through the entire weekend, however I wonder if something happened with the car when he hit the grass at the start of the race that caused it to have issues later on in the race. When you watch the highlights in slow motion that car was basically launched into the air, which an F1 car is not designed to do. They may reach up to speeds that make it seem like they are flying, but they can’t actually fly.

Speaking of early race retirements, Albon was not alone. Rookie Liam Lawson also retired on lap 57 due to mechanical issues.

In Lance Stroll news, it was his first race back after he suffered pain and issues from an old injury flaring up in his wrist, which caused him to miss the last race. Alas, he returned for the Canadian GP, and it was his home race. Unfortunately he did gain himself a 10 second penalty after he pushed Alpine’s driver Pierre Gasly off track.

Lap 67. A lap that everyone has been talking about. We all knew a Mclaren battle was coming, however I think we were expecting it to be later on in the season.

Lando Norris had a strong race pace the entire race, earning the fastest lap again and again. Moving up the grid fast, regardless of starting 7th on the grid. There was hope of a Mclaren on the podium, maybe even a double Mclaren podium, like we have seen so many times this season so far. However, during the last stretch of the race, Lando began putting pressure on his teammate Oscar Piastri. That pressure turned into a battle and while entering a corner, Lando overestimated the space between the wall and Piastri and after almost taking out his teammate, Norris found his way into the wall, ending his race and losing the 10 points he would have earned if he finished in 5th place.

What I would give to be a fly on the wall of the Mclaren garage after that. Jokes aside, it was a heartbreaking mistake, however not all was lost, Mclaren still earned some decent points since Piastri was able to finish 4th position. It was not the podium finish they may have hoped to achieve, but still a decent finish.

So who were the top drivers on the podium?

1. GeorgeRussell (Mercedes)

2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

3. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)

A great weekend for the Mercedes team. George Russell has yet to secure a seat for the 2026 season so his race win this weekend will be something for Mercedes and even other teams to consider when choosing their drivers for next season. Russell was also able to get the fastest lap of the day.

Kimi Anotonelli got on the podium!!! The cheers from the stands could be heard from far and wide. Not only is he a rookie but he is also now the 3rd youngest driver to ever be on the podium. He is old enough to be sprayed with the celebratory champagne but can't actually drink it.

Kimi Antonelli on the 2025 Canadian GP podium. Photo courtesy of F1 official Instagram

That concludes this year's Canadian GP, until next year! Next on the F1 calendar is the Austrian Grand Prix.