After the Azerbaijan Grand Prix only one week ago, F1 makes the long journey to Montreal for the Canadian Grand Prix in the latest round of the championship.
The race at the Gilles-Villeneuve circuit will be the first Canadian Grand Prix since 2019. It is a quick and flowing track with plenty of heavy braking, as drivers navigate the chicanes and tight hairpin. It’s a track that will quickly punish those who push too hard and includes the famous ‘Wall of Champions’, which has put an end to the races of some famous champions.
Lewis Hamilton holds the joint record for the most wins at the circuit having triumphed seven times since his debut in 2007, including victories in four of the last five races at the track. However, with his Mercedes team struggling this season, it will be difficult for him to add to his wins this weekend.
Red Bull are on a run of five consecutive wins and are looking like the team to beat. Reigning champion Max Verstappen has secured four of those five wins and now leads the driver’s championship by 21 points.
Ferrari’s season has started to fall apart over the last few events, and Baku saw both cars retire with reliability issues. Despite starting from pole on six occasions, Charles Leclerc has only been able to win two of those races which were in the first three races of the season. With Red Bull pulling ahead in both championships, Ferrari need to get back to form quickly.
Heading into the race, the FIA have announced plans to address the high-speed bouncing that has hampered this season’s new generation of cars. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix saw the cars heavily affected by this ‘porpoising ‘, so the governing body have stepped in after several drivers voiced their concerns.
However, with the Canadian Grand Prix having similar characteristics to the Baku circuit, it looks like it could be another uncomfortable race for the drivers.